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The Real Diary 
Of a Real Boy 


By 

Henry A. Shute 

Author of “Sequil/^ ‘‘Letters to Beany,*’ “Real 
Boys,” etc., etc. 


Twelfth Edition, Illustrated 


Boston: 

The Everett Press Company 
1906 



UBRARYof CONGRESS 
Two Copies Received 

FEb lb !90f 



Copyright, 1902, hy Henry A. Shute 
Copyright, 1903, hy Henry A. Shute 
Copyright, 1906, by The Everett Press Co. 


Publishers’ Note 

HE word “real” fitly char- 



acterizes this unique record 


of New England boy-life of 
a generation ago. Not only are the 
scenes and incidents real, but the 
characters themselves are “fiesh and 
blood.” 

For this reason the publishers 
have departed from the usual course 
in illustrating this volume. 

Exeter i'l the shire town of Rock- 
ingham County, New Hampshire, 
situated at the head of navigation 
on a branch of Piscataquis River that 
forms Portsmouth’s fine harbor. 
The Squamscott River is a fresh- 


Publishers’ Note 

water stream and supplies water- 
power for manufacturing purposes, 
as well as for boating, fishing, swim- 
ming, and skating. The river’s 
banks are bordered by broad meadows 
and groves of noble pines and giant 
oaks — the favorite picnic-grounds of 
young and old. 

The town is no less distinguished 
by the prosperity, culture, and refine- 
ment of its citizens than by its 
beautiful situation. Phillips Acad- 
emy was established there in 1782, 
and holds high rank among the 
preparatory schools of the country. 

The students and townspeople 
have long since forgotten the ani- 
mosities of the ’go’s and fraternize 
freely. The alumni of the academy 


Publishers’ Note 

neglect no opportunity to return to 
“old Exeter” and renew the de- 
lightful associations of their school- 
days, while the citizens vie with 
each other in making them wel- 
come. 

The “stewdcat” historians are 
legion, and are scattered over the 
whole world. This modest volume 
is the only known history of the 
“townies,” and it is hoped that in 
this form it is worthy a permanent 
place in every library in the land. 


** ' 




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List of Illustrations 

Frontispiece. 

Plupy (two sittings). 

Beany and Pewt. 

Fatty and Whacker. 

Pozzy and Potter. 

Tomtit, Georgie, Pop, and Lizzie Tole. 

Boog. A favorite pastime. 

Court Street, looking towards old High 
School — stumping-ground of the boys. 

House once occupied by J. Albert Clark 
and Plupy, Court Street. Beany’s resi- 
dence, Court Street. 

Residence of Perry Moulton, Pewt, and 
Nipper, Court Street. Old High School, 
where “Johny” Gibson taught and 
fought. 

Historic Gilman Mansion, Fatty’s residence. 

Front Street, Phillips Academy on both sides. 


List of Illustrations 

Front Street, looking toward centre of town. 
Entrance to Eddy Woods. 

Eddy Woods. 

Scene on Squamscott River. 

Approach to Squamscott River and the 
swimming-hole. 


Introduction 

I N the winter of 1901-02, while 
rummaging an old closet in the 
shed - chamber of my father’s 
house, I unearthed a salt-box which 
had been equipped with leather 
hinges at the expense of considerable 
ingenuity, and at a very remote pe- 
riod. In addition to this, a hasp of 
the same material, firmly fastened 
by carpet-tacks and a catch of bent 
wire, bade defiance to burglars, mid- 
night marauders, and safe-breakers. 

With the aid of a tack -hammer 
the combination was readily solved, 
and an eager examination of the con- 
tents of the box disclosed: — 

[ 5 ] 


Introduction 

1. Fish-line of braided shoema- 
ker’s thread, with perch hook, to 
which adhered the mummied re- 
mains of a worm that lived and flour- 
ished many, many years ago. 

2. Popgun of pith elder and hoop- 
skirt wire. 

3. Horse-chestnut bolas, calcu- 
lated to revolve in opposite directions 
with great velocity, by an up-and- 
down motion of the holder’s wrist; 
also extensively used for the adorn- 
ment of telegraph-wires, ^ — there were 
no telephones in those days, — and 
the cause of great profanity amongst 
linemen. 

4. More fish-hooks of the ring va- 
riety, now obsolete, 

5. One blood alley, two chinees, a 

[ 6 ] 


Introduction 

parti-colored glass agate, three pe- 
wees, and unnumbered drab-colored 
marbles. 

6. Small bow of whalebone, with 
two arrows. 

7. Six-inch bean-blower, for school 
use — a weapon of considerable range 
and great precision when used with 
judgment behind a Guyot’s Com- 
mon School Geography. 

8. Unexpended ammunition for 
same, consisting of putty pellets. 

9. Frog’s hind leg, extra dry. 

10. Wing of bluejay, very ditto. 

11. Letter from “Beany,” post- 
marked “Biddeford, Me.,” and ex- 
pressing great indignation because 
‘ ‘ Pe wt ” “ hasent wrote. 

12. Copy-book inscribed “Diry. ” 

[7] 


Introduction 

The examination of this copy-book 
lasted the rest of the day, and it was 
read with the peculiar pleasure one 
experiences in reviewing some of the 
events of a happy boyhood. 

With the earnest hope that others 
may experience a little of the pleas- 
ure I gained from the reading, I sub- 
mit the “Diry” to the public. 

Hekry a. Shute. 


Exeter, N. H., Sept. 23, 1902. 


9 




F ather thot i aught to keep 
a diry, but i sed i dident want 
to, because i coodent wright 
well enuf, but he sed he wood give 
$1000 dolars if he had kept a diry 
when he was a boy. 

Mother ,said she gessed nobody 
wood dass to read it, but father said 
everybody would tumble over each 
other to read it, anyhow he wood 
give $1000 dolars if he had kept it. 
i told him i wood keep one regular if 
he wood give me a quarter of a dolar 
a week, but he said i had got to keep 
it anyhow and i woodent get no 
quarter for it neither, but he wood- 
ent ask to read it for a year, and i 


The Real Diary 

know he will forget it before that, so 
i am going to wright just what i 
want to in it. Father always forgets 
everything but my lickins. he re- 
members them every time you bet. 

So i have got to keep it, but it 
seems to me that my diry is worth a 
quarter of a dolar a week if fathers 
is worth $1000 dolars, everybody 
says father was a buster when he 
was a boy and went round with 
Gim Melcher and Charles Talor. 
my grandmother says i am the best 
boy she ever see, if i dident go with 
Beany Watson and Pewter Purin- 
ton, it was Beany and Pewt made 
me tuf. 

there dos’nt seem to be much to 
put into a diry only fites and who 
[ 10 ] 


1 


Of a Real Boy 

got licked at school and if it ranes or 
snows, so i will begin today. 

December 1, 186- brite and fair, 
late to brekfast, but mother dident 
say nothing, father goes to boston 
and works in the custum house so i 
can get up as late as i want to. 
father says he works like time, but i 
went to boston once and father did- 
ent do anything but tell stories 
\ about what he and Gim Melcher 
usted to do when he was a boy. 
once or twice when a man came in 
they would all be wrighting fast, 
when the man came in again i sed 
why do you all wright so fast when 
he comes in and stop when he goes 
out, and the man sort of lalFed and 
went out laffing, and the men were 
[ 11 ] 


The Real Diary 

mad and told father not to bring 
that dam little fool again. 

December 2. Skinny Bruce got 
licked in school today. I told my 
granmother about it and she said she 
was glad i dident do enything to get 
punnished for and she felt sure i never 
wood, i dident tell her i had to stay 
in the wood box all the morning 
with the cover down, i dident tell 
father either you bet. 

December 2. rany. i forgot to say 
it raned yesterday too. i got cold and 
have a red rag round my gozzle. 

December 2. pretty near had a 
fite in schol today. Skinny Bruce 
and Frank Elliot got rite up with 
there fists up when the bell rung, it 
[ 12 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

was two bad, it wood have been a 
buly fite. i bet on Skinny. 

December 3, 186- brite and fair, 
went to church today. Me and Pewt 
and Beany go to the Unitarial 
church, we all joined Sunday school 
to get into the Crismas festerval. 
they have it in the town hall and 
have two trees and supper and pres- 
ents for the scholars, so we are go- 
\ ing to stay til after crismas anyway 
the unitarials have jest built a new 
church. Pewt and Beany’s fathers 
painted it and so they go there, i 
don’t know why we go there xcept 
because they don’t have any church 
in the afternoon. Nipper Brown and 
Micky Gould go there, we all went 
[ 18 ] 


The Real Diary 

into the same class, our teacher is 
Mister Winsor a student, we call 
them stewdcats. after we had said 
our lesson we all skinned out with 
Mr. Winsor. when we went down 
Maple street we saw 2 roosters fiting 
in Dany Wingates yard, and we 
stoped to see it. i knew more about 
fiting roosters than any of the fellers, 
because me and Ed Towle had fit 
roosters lots. Mr. Winsor said i was 
a sport, well while the roosters were 
fiting, Sunday school let out and he 
skipped acros the street and walked 
off with one of the girls and we hol- 
lered for him to come and see the 
fite out, and he turned red and 
looked mad. the leghorn squorked 

[ 14 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

and stuck his head into a corner, 
when a rooster squorks he wont fite 
any more. 

December 5. snowed today and 
school let out at noon, this after- 
noon went down to the library to 
plug stewdcats. there was me and 
Beany and Pewt, and Whacker and 
Pozzy Chadwiek and Pricilla Hobbs. 
Pricilla is a feller you know, and 
\ Pheby Talor, Pheby is a feller too, 
and Lubbin Smith and Nigger Bell, 
he is’ nt a nigger only we call him 
Nigger, and Tommy Tompson and 
Dutchey Seamans and Chick Chick- 
ering, and Tady Finton and Chitter 
Robinson. 

December 6. Gim Wingate has 
got a new bobtail coat. 

[ 15 ] 


The Real Diary 

December 7 , 186- Got sent to bed 
last nite for smoking hayseed cigars 
and can’t go with Beany enny more. 
It is funny, my father wont let me 
go with Beany becaus he is tuf, and 
Pewts father wont let Pewt go with 
me becaus im tuf, and Beanys father 
says if he catches me or Pewt in his 
yard he will lick time out of us. 
Rany today. 

December 8. Skinny Bruce got 
licked in school today. Skipy Moses 
was in the wood box all the morn- 
ing. 

December 9. brite and fair, speak- 
in day today, missed in Horatius at 
the brige, 

December 10. Clowdy but no 
[ 16 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

rane. went to church, lots of new 
fellers in Sunday school, me and 
Beany and Pewt and Pile Woods 
and Billy Folsom and Jimmy Gad 
and lots of others. Mister Winsor 
dident teach today, gess they 
woodent let him on account of the 
rooster fite. 

December 11. My new boots from 
Tommy Gads came today, i tell you 
' they are dumpers, no snow yet. 

December 12. Crismas is pretty 
near, dont know wether i shall get 
ennything. father says i dont de- 
sirve ennything. you can get gooze- 
berrys down to Si Smiths 1 dozen 
for 5 cents. He has a funny sine it 
is 


[ 17 ] 


The Real Diary 

flour 

meal 

molasses 

sugar 

coffee 

tea 

spises 

pork & 

lard 

salt 

butter 

ham 

eggs 

&SO 

December 15. Fite at resess to- 
day, Gran Miller and Ben Rundlet. 
Ben licked him easy, the fellers 
got to stumping each other to flte. 
[ 18 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

Micky Gould said he cood lick me 
and i said he want man enuf and he 
said if i wood come out behind the 
school house after school he wood 
show me and i said i wood and all 
the fellers hollered and said they 
wood be there. But after school i 
thaught i aught to go home and split 
my kindlings and so i went home, 
a feller aught to do something for 
' his family ennyway. i cood have 
licked him if i had wanted to. 

December 16. Tady Finton got 
licked in school today, snowed to- 
day a little. 

December 17. rained in the nite 
and then snowed a little, it was au- 
ful slipery and coming out of church 
Squire Lane fell down whak and Mr. 
[ 19 ] 


The Real Diary 

Burley cought hold of the fence and 
his feet went so fast that they seemed 
all fuzzy, i tell you if he cood run as 
fast as that he cood run a mile a 
minite. 

December 18. brite and fair, noth- 
ing particilar. o yes, Skinny Bruce 
got licked in school. 

December 19. Cold as time. 
Went to a sosiable tonite at the 
Unitarial vestry, cant go again be- 
cause Keene told mother i was impi- 
dent to the people, i want impident. 
you see they was making poetry and 
all sitting around the vestry, they 
wanted to play copenhagin and post 
office and clap in and clap out, but 
Mister Erl woodent let them be- 
cause it was in church, so they had 
[ 20 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

to play poetry, one person wood 
give a word and then the oppisite 
person wood give a word that rimed 
with it. it was auful silly, a girl 
wood give the word direxion and 
then a stewdcat wood say afFexion 
and waul his eyes towards the girl, 
and then another wood say miss, and 
another stewdcat wood say kiss and 
then he wood waul his eyes, and 
' when it came my turn i said what 
rimes with jellycake, and the girls 
turned red and the stewdcats looked 
funny, and Mister Burley said if i 
coodent behave i had better go 
home. Keene needent have told 
mother anyway. You jest wait 
Keene, and see what will happen 
some day. 


[ 21 ] 


The Real Diary 

December 20. Bully skating, went 
after school and skated way up to 
the eddy, was going to skate with 
Lucy Watson but Pewt and Beany 
hollered so that i dident dass to. 
John Toomey got hit with a hockey 
block rite in the snoot and broke 
his nose. 

December 21. Brite and fair, no- 
thing particular to-day. nobody got 
licked, old Francis had his hand 
done up in a sling, he said he had a 
bile on it. i tell you the fellers were 
glad. 

December 22. Warm and rany 
and spoiled the skating, coodent do 
anything but think of Crismas. 

December 23 . Saturday and no 
skating, went down to the library 
[ 22 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

to get a book for Sunday, me and 
Beany were stieking pins into the 
fellers and making them holler and 
Jo Parsons the libarian jumped rite 
over the counter and chased us way 
down to Mr. Hams coffin shop, he 
dident catch us either, then we 
went down town and Billy Swett 
lent me a dime novel to read Sun- 
day. it was named Billy Bolegs a 
\ sequil to Nat Tod the traper. sequil 
means the things in Nat Tod that 
was not finished. 

December 24. Brite and fair. 
Crismas tomorrow, went to Sunday 
school. Mr. Lovel is our teacher 
now. 

December 25. Crismas. got a 
new nife, a red and white scarf and 
[ 28 ] 


The Real Diary 

a bag of Si Smiths goozeberies, 
pretty good for me. 

December 26. Crismas tree at the 
town hall, had supper and got a 
bag of candy and a long string of 
pop corn. Mr. Lovel took off the 
presents and his whiskers caught 
fire, and he hollered o hell right out. 
that was pretty good for a Sunday 
school teacher, wasent it. Jimmy 
Gad et too much and was sick. 

December 27. Beany has got a 
new striped shirt not a false bosom 
but a whole shirt. Beany wont 
speak to me now. Lucy Watson 
has got a new blew hat with a 
fether. she wont speak to Keene 
and Cele eether. you jest wait 
Beany and Lucy and see. 

[ 24 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

Jan. 1, 186- Had an awful time in 
school today, me and Cawcaw 
Harding set together, when we 
came in from resess Cawcaw reached 
over and hit me a bat, and i lent 
him one in the snoot, and he hit me 
back, we was jest fooling, but old 
Francis called Cawcaw up front to 
lick him. i thought if i went up and 
told him he wood say, noble boy go 
\ to your seat, i wont lick neether of 
you. anyway i knew that Cawcaw 
wood tell on me, and so i told old 
Francis i hit Cawcaw first, and old 
Francis said Harry i have had my 
eye on you for a long time, and he 
jest took us up and slammed us to- 
gether, and then he wood put me 
down and shake Cawcaw and then 
C 25 ] 


The Real Diary 

he wood put Cawcaw down and 
shake me till my head wabbled and 
he turned me upside down and all 
the fellers looked upside down and 
went round and round and somehow 
i felt silly like and kind of like laflfin. 
i dident want to lafF but coodent 
help it. and then he talked to us 
and sent us to our seats and told us 
to study, and i tried to but all the 
words in the book went round and 
round and i felt awful funny and 
kind of wabbly, and when i went 
home mother said something was 
the matter and i told her and then i 
cried, i don’t know what i cried for, 
becaus i dident ake any. father said 
he wood lick me at home when i got 
licked at school and perhaps that was 
[ 26 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

why i cried, ennyway when father 
come home i asked him if he was a 
going to lick me and he said not by 
a dam sight, and he gave me ten 
cents and when i went to bed i got 
laffin and crying all to once, and 
coodent stop, and mother set in my 
room and kept her hand on my for- 
red until i went to sleep, i drempt i 
was fiting all the time, when i get 
'big enuf there is going to be a fite 
between me and old Francis, you see 
if there aint. 

Jan. 2, Me and Beany has made 
up. i told him i had ten cents and 
then he dident feel so big about his 
new shirt, ennyway we went down 
to Si Smiths and got a dozen gooze- 
berries and then went down to doc- 
[ 27 ] 


The Real Diary 

tor Derborns and got a glass of sody 
water and took turns drinking it and 
seeing which cood gulp the loudest. 
Beany beat. 

Jan. 3. brite and fair. Went 
down to Pewts tonite to make hay- 
seed cigars. We made 5 kinds, hay- 
seed, sweet firn, cornsilk, mullin 
leeves, and grape vine, my mouth 
taisted aufuly all nite. 

Jan. 4. brite and fair. Pewt dident 
come to school today, i gess he was 
sick, my mouth taisted aufuly all 
day. 

Jan. 5. dowdy and aufuly cold. 
Pewt came to school today and got 
a licking for puting gum on Nigger 
Bells seat. Nig set in it til it dride 
and then tride to get up and coodent. 

[ 28 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

then old Francis come down the ile 
and snaiked Nigger out and when he 
see the gum he asked us who put it 
there, we all said we dident, but he 
licked Pewt becaus he had seen Pewt 
chooing gum. 

Jan. 6. it snowed last nite and to- 
day. Speaking in school today, i 
spoke the berrial of sir John More, 
old Francis said he never heard enny- 
^ thing wirse in his life, i hope he 
wont tell father, this afternoon we 
pluged stewdcats. 

Jan. 7. Ed Towle has got a gote. 
the fellers stumped me to hold him 
by the horns and he buted me over 
in the slosh, mother said i had no 
bisiness to be playing on Sunday. 

Jan. 8. brite and fair, there is go- 
[ 29 ] 


The Real Diary 

ing to be a nigger show in the town 
hall tonite. father says i cant go be- 
caus i sassed aunt Sarah, it is uncle 
Toms cabbin. 

Jan. 9. brite and fair. Be Any 
went to the nigger show, he led one 
of the bludhouns in the prosession 
and got a ticket. Beany had on a 
red coat jest like the dogs, he said 
it was buly. 

Jan. 10. rany. Nipper Brown is 
the best scolar in my class, i am the 
wirst. i can lick Nipper easy. 

Jan. 11. brite and fair. After 
school me and Beany and Pewt and 
Fatty Melcher and Pozzy Chadwick 
and lots of fellers went skating on 
fresh river, i was skating backwerd 
and i got one leg in a eal hole, gosh 

[ 30 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

the water was cold and before i got 
home my britches leg was all froze. 

Jan. 12. nobody got licked in 
school today, gess why, becaus there 
wassent enny school, old Francis 
was sick, i went skating. 

Jan. 13. brite and — no it was 
rany. had a speling mach today in 
school. Cele and Genny Morrison 
staid up til the last and then Cele 
^ missed and set down balling, and 
Genny beat, i cant stop to wright 
enny more becaus i am going to the 
levee with father. 

Jan. 14, 186- Went to a big levee 
last nite at the town hall. Bill 
Morrill and Nuel Head and Dave 
Quimby and Frank Hervey got it 
up. they had Hook and Pasons 
[ 31 ] 


The Real Diary 

quadril band of Haverhil. father 
bought a ticket becaus he was in the 
custum house and has to be frends 
with people, it was splendid, most 
everybody went all dressed up in 
blue silk and red and crokay slippers. 
Ham Perkins and Charlie Lane and 
Charley Piper and Chick Randall 
and Dan Ranlet and Grace Morril 
and the Head girls and Sweat girls 
and Carrie Towle and Sarah Clark, 
J. Albert Clarks sister and the Mel- 
cher boys and they all hopped round 
pretty lively, i tell you. i staid until 
12 o’clock and listened to the band, 
i never had so good time in my life. 

Jan. 15. i am all spekled over, 
mother says she is afrade i have got 
[ 32 ] 


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Pozzy Potter 



Of a Real Boy 

chicken pocks, i gess i have been in 
the hen koop to mutch. 

Jan. 16. the speckles have all 
gone of. doctor Perry says i et to 
many donuts. 

Jan. 18. brite and fair, yesterday 
to and day before yesterday i have 
forgot. 

Jan. 19. snowed all day. Me and 
Beany is mad. 

Jan. 20. father is sick becaus he 
et to mutch salt fish and potato and 
pork, he is auful cross and hit me a 
bat today becaus i left the door open, 
i gess he will be sorry when i am 
ded. 

Jan. 21. brite and fair, went to 
church in the morning and in the 

[ 33 ] 


The Real Diary 

afternoon greeced some paper and 
trased some pictures. 

Jan. 22. i had to stay in the wood- 
box today for whispering to Whacker 
with the cover down, i like it becaus 
they is a peep hole in the box and 
you can see the fellers and they cant 
see you. by and by Gimmy Fits- 
gerald whispered and old Francis put 
him in to and we took turns peep- 
ing. 

Jan. 23. it raned hard all day and 
we had one sesion. Beany came over 
and we made up and plaid in the 
barn making fly boxes. 

Jan. 24. nothing much today, 
rany in the morning and froze at 
night. 

Jan. 25. brite and fair, everything 

[ 34 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

was covered with ice and when father 
started for the depot he tumbled 
down the front steps from the top to 
the botom. mother says he went 
bumpity bump and his hat went one 
way and his dinner box went the 
other, i herd him swaring aufuly 
about that dam boy, and i gess he 
wood have come up and licked time 
out of me, but he had to hurry to get 
- the train. 

Jan. 26. jest as soon as the skat- 
ing comes it has to snow and spoil it. 

Jan. 27. i coodent go out of the 
yard this afternoon becaus i dident 
put ashes on the front steps before 
father fell down and so Pewt and 
Beany and Whacker and Nibby 
Hartwell and Diddly Colket and 

[ 35 ] 


The Real Diary 

Nipper and Prisilla and Gim Wingit 
and lots of the fellers came over 
and we had a snowball fite. mother 
says she hops father wont keep me 
at home another afternoon. 

Jan. 28. brite and fair, it never 
ranes Sundays so a feller cant go to 
church. 

Jan. 29. Nothing puticular today, 
it always seams harder to go to 
school mundays, more fellers gets 
licked mundays than enny day in the 
weak, i got stood on the platform 
with my head in the corner for look- 
ing of my book today. 

Jan. 30. brite and fair, i have got 
a auful chilblane on my heel. 

Jan. 31. brite and fair, i was glad 
today was wensday in the afternoon 
[ 36 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

1 went skating, the students played 
baseball on the ice. 

Feb. 1. brite and fair, pretty soon 
it will be Washintons berthday, 
and then all the boys can ring the 
town bell at noon and at nite. 

Feb. 2. dowdy but no snow, to- 
morror will be saterday they is only 

2 days in the weak that is wirth en- 
nything and that is wensday and 
saterday except in vacation. 

Feb. 3. Snowed like time all the 
forenoon, in the afternoon me and 
Pewt and Beany rolled up some big 
snowballs, then tonite we put all 
the balls together and made a big 
snowman rite in front of Mrs. Lew- 
ises front door, then we put a old 
hat on it and hung a peace of paper 
[ 37 ] 


The Real Diary 

on it and wrote man wanted on the 
paper, tomorrow all the people who 
go to church will see it and lafF be- 
caus Mister Lewis got a devorse. 
they will be some fun tomorrow. 

Feb. 5. i coodent wright enny- 
thing last nite becaus i got sent tq 
bed and got a licking, i tell you we 
got in a auful scrape. Sunday morn- 
ing me and Pewt and Beany went 
out erly to see our snowman, he 
was there and when people began to 
go by they began to lafF, and most 
of the people said it was the funniest 
thing they ever see and who ever pu. 
it there was a pretty smart feller, so 
we said we did it and Pewt said he 
thought of it ferst and Beany said he 
[ 88 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

did, and i said i did most '“of the 
werk. 

Well, pretty soon some people 
came along and looked at it and said 
it was a shame and they went over 
to pull of the paper and she came 
out and see it, and she took a broom 
and nocked it over and broke it all 
up. and then she went rite down to 
jny house to tell father, then she 
went over to Beanys house and then 
up to Pewts. well after church 
father took me over to her house, 
and Beany was there with his father 
and Pewt with his father, she said 
she wood have us arested for it. but 
they talked a long time and after a 
while she said if our fathers wood 
[ 39 ] 


The Real Diary 

lick us and make us saw and split a 
cord of wood she woodent say no 
more about it. when we went out 
father said, i never see such dam 
boys did you Brad, did you Wats, 
and they said they never did. so we 
have got to saw and split that wood 
and we got licked two. 

Feb. 6. brite and fair, me and 
Pewt and Beany sawed and split 
some wood for Misses Lewis. 

Feb. 7. brite and fair, sawed 
some more wood, me and Pewt and 
Beany. 

Feb. 8. brite and fair, split some 
more wood, me and Pewt and 
Beany. 

Feb. 9. Fatty Melcher and Caw- 
caw Harding, Chitter Robinson and 

[ 40 ] 






Lizzie Tole 
Ed Tole’s Sister 





Of a Real Boy 

Medo Thurston helped saw some 
more wood. 

Feb. 10. Brite and fair, this af- 
ternoon Whack Pozzy and Boog 
Chadwick, Dutchy Semans, Nigger 
Bell Pop Clark, Shinny Thing and 
Pile Wood all come down with saws 
and axes and helped us saw that 
wood, we worked all the afternoon 
and got it done and piled up before 
^ark. then Misses Lewis asked us 
in and gave us some buly donuts 
and some sweatened water and we 
sung and told stories and before we 
went we told her we was sorry we 
hilt the snowman and she said she 
was sorry two. then when we went 
away we give 3 cheers for her. 


[ 41 ] 


The Real Diary 

Feb. 11. brite and fair, i shant 
forget last Sunday very soon. 

Feb. 12. rany today, i dont care 
becaus i havent got to saw enny 
more wood. 

Feb. 13. still rany. i dont care. 

Feb. 14. pretty cold today, going 
to have a new kind of speling mach 
tomorrow. 

Feb. 15. Got to the head in spell- 
ing today, old Francis makes us all 
stand up in the ile and gives us a lot 
of words to spell and then we wright 
them down on our slates and then 
the head feller or girl changes slates 
with the foot feller or girl and so on 
and then old Francis wrights the 
words on the blackboard and then 
we mark each others slates. John 
[ 42 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

Flanygin was the foot feller and had 
my slate, well most of Johns words 
was wrong, but John marked mine 
all write, i gess John dident know 
it, but ther was 4 or 5 of my words 
speled wrong, i set out to tell old 
Francis but dident dass to becaus he 
licked me for teling that i paisted 
Cawcaw Harding that time, so i 
kept still and kept at the head and 
'John kept at the foot, i hope John 
will do it again tomorrow. 

Feb. 16. Beat in speling today. 
Feb. 17. beat in speling today, 
Feb. 19. Beat in speling today, 
old Francis is a going to give a prise 
tomorrow, i told father i was pretty 
sure to get it and he said it will be 
the first one. Aunt Sarah asked 
[ 43 ] 


The Real Diary 

him if he took many prises, and he 
said he dident get much of a prise 
when he got me. i gess he wont say 
that tomorrow when i bring my 
prise home. 

Feb. 20. i dident get the prise, 
you see yesterday John Flanygin 
spelt more words write than Gimmy 
Fitsgerald and Gimmy went to the 
foot, when we marked slates Gimmy 
marked 9 of my words wrong out of 
20, and i had to go down most to 
where John Flannygin was. old 
Francis said he dident beleave i had 
aught to have staid at the head so 
long as i did and i was afraid he 
wood lick me and John but he did- 
ent. he said he was ashamed and 
disapointed in me but i gess he was 

[ 44 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

not the only one who was disapoint- 
ed, i had told Pewt and Beany i 
wood treat on what father wood give 
me for getting the prise. Pewt and 
Beany was both mad, and are going 
to lay for Gimmy. 

Feb. 21, i forgot to say what the 
wether was most every day this 
weak, it has been brite and fair most 
of the time, only it snowed two days 
and raned most of one day. brite 
and fair today and cold as time. 

Feb. 23, Clowdy and cold. Pop 
Clark had to crawl through a chair 
today, he went through so fast old 
Francis only hit him 2 bats. Tady 
Finton and Nigger Bell both got 
licked. Tady dident cry or holler a 
bit, but Nigger hollered just like a 
[ 45 ] 


The Real Diary 

girl, i supposed Nigger was more of 
a man than that. 

Feb. 24, Beany and Pewt got 
punching today in school and old 
Francis made them stand on the 
platform with their arms round each 
others neck all the forenoon, i bet 
they felt pretty cheep. Brite and 
fair. 

Feb. 25, i have got a new pair of 
britches at erl and Cutts. i gess 
Beany aint the only one which has 
good clothes eather. 

Feb. 26. Nothing particular to- 
day. Went down to old Heads shop 
to see the stewdcats ride velosipedes. 
There is going to be a race in the 
town hall tomorrow night. 

Feb. 27 . Father said i cood go to 


[ 46 3 


Of a Real Boy 

the velosipede race if i woodent miss 
splitting my kindlings for a week, i 
did miss them twice but mother did- 
ent tell him and if he dont ask her 
before tonight i am all right. 

Feb. 28. Last night went to the 
velosipede race, it was jest ripping, 
i got down before the door opened. 
Bob Carter came pretty soon but he 
^ woodent let us in until the ticket 
man came. Mr. Watson was the 
ticket man and he let me and Beany 
and Shinny Thing in free, they had 
a lot of seats in the center of the hall, • 
and the rest round the edges, and a ' 
open track around the hall. On the 
platform set Bill Morrill and Dave 
Quimby and John Getchell and 
Eben Folsom. Most of the fellers 
[ 47 ] 


The Real Diary 

in the race were stewdcats and most 
of the stewdcats and the girls had 
the seats in the center of the hall. 
The stewdcats who were to race were 
Stone and Stuart and Lee and Clif- 
ford and August Belmont and Swift 
and Nichols and George Kent and 
Cutler and Johnny Heald and Gear 
and Burly and Bob Morison. the 
townies were Charlie Gerish and 
Doctor Prey, each feller rode round 
the hall twice to get going like time, 
and then Dave Quimby hollered go 
and he had to ride around the hall 
until he had rid a quarter of a mile. 

When the stewdcats rode all the 
other stewdcats yelled and the girls 
waved their handkerchiefs and the 
C 48 ] 






Of a Real Boy 

band played and the excitement was 
dreadful. 

After a while Docter Prey came 
out and all the townies got up and 
cheered and the band played the star 
spangled banner, because Doctor fit 
in the war, and Doctor took of his 
hat and bowed and then rode round 
like time, he rode faster than most 
every one of them except Stone and 
Stuart and Lee and Clifibrd and Bel- 
mont and Swift, i gess if Doc hadent 
fit so hard in the war he wood have 
beat them all. and then Charlie 
Gerish came out and all the townies 
hollered again and Charlie made his 
legs go so fast that they coodent 
hardly see them, and jest before the 
[ 49 ] 


The Real Diary 

last time around his velosipede 
slipped and Charlie went fluking 
over three settees, he jumped on his 
velosipede again and went around 
with his britches all torn but he did- 
ent get around quite quick enuf to 
beat Stone, then the townies yelled 
and said it was a cheat and the 
stewdcats hissed, and some of the 
townies said they could lick the 
stewdcats, and the stewdcats said 
they wasent man enuf and it looked 
as if there was a going to be a row 
when Charlie Gerrish got up and 
said he was beat fair and there was- 
ent enything to get mad about, and 
that he would like to shake hands 
with the stewdcat which beat him, 
and he wood like to race him an- 
[ 50 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

other time but he coodent then be- 
cause he hurt his leg, and then they 
shook hands and every one felt buly, 
and the stewdcats said hooray for 
Charlie and the townies hollered 
hooray for Stone, and Bill Morrill 
made a speech and give the prise to 
Stone and the band played and we 
all went home, i bet Doc. Prey and 
Charlie Gerrish can lick any two 
stewdcats in the hall. 

Mar. 2. i went to a show in the 
town hall tonight, it was a singing 
show called the haymakers, it was 
splendid. Mr. Gale got it up. they 
have been practising all winter. Alice 
Gewell was a dary maid and Charlie 
Lane was a katydid, and lots of oth- 
ers sung, it was splendid. 

[ 51 ] 


The Real Diary 

Mar. 3. Cloudy but no rane. went 
down to Langley’s store for some 
juju paste, saw a fite. Old Kize tried 
to arest Bill Hartnit and Bill lam- 
med time out of him and after a 
while old Swain came up and arrest- 
ed him. 

Mar. 4. Brite and fair. Went to 
church to-day, the fernace smoked 
so the people had to come home. 
They say they will have it fixed be- 
fore next Sunday, i hope not. 

Mar. 5. School closes tomorrow. 

1 got kept after school tonight for 
whispering to Cawcaw. 

Mar. 6. School closed today and 
we voted for prises. Mr. Gordon 
give 4 prizes for the 2 best fellers and 

2 best girls for the term. So we voted 

[ 52 ] 



I **1 
* *• 

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H 




Of a Real Boy 

for them. Most of the fellers wanted 
to vote for Jenny Morrison because 
she was the prettiest girl there and 
can go the greeshun bend better than 
enny girl in the school, and most 
of the girls dident like Jenny Morri- 
son and wanted to vote for Dora 
Moses and Mary Luverin, and the 
girls wanted to vote for Lees Moses 
because he was polite to them and 
rather go with the girls than the 
boys and we holler at him, but he 
can fite for i saw him lick Gim Erly 
one day, and Gim Erly can rassle 
better than enny one but Jack Mel- 
vil. well most of the fellows wanted 
to vote for Tady Finton or Pop 
Clark or Skinny Bruce because they 
never get mad or cry when they are 
[ 53 ] 


The Real Diary 

licked and make lots of fun, but we 
knew they coodent get the prize for 
they are all the time raising time and 
getting lieked and so we voted for 
Honey Donovan and Moses Gordon, 
and when the votes was counted 
Dora Moses and Mary Luvering got 
the prizes for the girls and Mose 
Gordon and Nigger Bell for the boys. 
That was all write about Dora Moses 
and Mary Luverin because they was 
the best girls and always went to- 
gether, but we dident like it very 
well about Mose and Nigger, only 
we thought that so long as Mose’s 
father give the prizes Mose ought to 
have one. i gess most of the girls 
must have voted for Nig, because 
[ 54 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

they was mad with Lees Moses, i 
know what they was mad at too. 

Then the first class give old Fran- 
cis a present of some books and when 
he turned over the leaves there was 
twenty dollars there, and old Francis 
was surprised and made a fine speech, 
and the people all clapped becaus he 
made such a good speech, i heard 
him saying it over the night before 
when i was kept after school. No 
school for 2 weeks. 

Mar. 7. When my father was a 
boy he was the best fiter in this 
town. 

Mar. 9. Went down to Fatty 
Melchers today to make a violin, we 
cut a piece of wood the shape of a 
[ 55 ] 


The Real Diary 

violin then take some horsehairs and 
strech them over a brige and you 
can play a tune on them, in school 
i learnt to play on a piece of india 
rubber, you pull a piece of elastic 
out of your congres boot and hold it 
in your teeth and pull it tite and 
snap it with your fingers and you can 
play tunes that you can hear but no 
one else can. old Francis saw me 
snapping the elastic and came and 
took it away, i have got plenty 
more in my boot, i am saving money 
to buy me a cornet, when i get enuf 
i am a going to play in the band. 

Mar. 10. plesent day. old Si 
Smiths big white dog and a bull dog 
had an awful fite today, neether 
licked and they had to squert water 
[ 56 ] 



Court Street 

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Of a Real Boy 

on them to separate them, they did- 
ent make no noise, only jest hung 
write on to each others gozzles. my 
aunt Sarah said it was dredful, and 
she staid to the window to see how 
dredful it was. 

Mar. 11, 186- Went to church in 
the morning, the fernace was all 
write. Mister Lennard preached 
about loving our ennymies, and told 
'every one if he had any angry feel- 
ings towards ennyone to go to him 
and shake hands and see how much 
better you wood feel, i know how it 
is becaus when me and Beany are 
mad we dont have eny fun and when 
we make up the one who is to blam 
always wants to treet. why when 
Beany was mad with me becaus i 
[ 57 ] 


The Real Diary 

went home from Gil Steels surprise 
party with Lizzie Towle, Ed Towles 
sister, he woodent speak to me for 2 
days, and when we made up he 
treated me to ice cream with 2 spoons 
and he let me dip twice to his once, 
he took pretty big dips to make up. 
Beany is mad if enny of the fellers 
go with Lizzie Towle, she likes 
Beany better than she does enny of 
the fellers and Beany ought to be 
satisfied, but sometimes he acks mad 
when i go down there to fite roosters 
with Ed. i gess he needent worry 
much, no feller isnt going to leave 
of fiting roosters to go with no girls, 
well i most forgot what i was going 
to say, but after church i went up to 
Micky Gould who was going to fite 
[ 58 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

me behind the school house, and said 
Micky lets be friends and Micky said, 
huh old Skinny, i can lick you in 2 
minits and i said you aint man enuf 
and he called me a nockneed puke, 
and i called him a wall eyed lummix 
and he give me a paist in the eye and 
i gave him a good one in the mouth, 
and then we rassled and Micky threw 
me and i turned him, and he got 
'hold of my new false bosom and i 
got hold of his hair, and the fellers 
all hollered hit him Micky, paist him 
Skinny, and Mister Purington, 
Pewts father pulled us apart and i 
had Mickys paper collar and necktie 
and some of his hair and he had my 
false bosom and when i got home 
father made me go to bed and stay 
[ 59 ] 


The Real Diary 

there all the afternoon for fiting, but 
i gess he dident like my losing my 
false bosom, ennyway he asked me 
how many times i hit Micky and 
which licked, he let me get up at 
supper time, next time i try to love 
my ennymy i am a going to lick him 
first. 

Went to a Sunday school concert 
in the evening. Keene and Cele sung 
now i lay me down to sleep, they 
was a lot of people sung together 
and Mister Gale beat time. Charlie 
Gerish played the violin and Miss 
Packerd sung, i was scart when 
Keene and Cele sung for i was afraid 
they would break down, but they 
dident, and people said they sung 
like night horks. i gess if they 
[ 60 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

knowed how night horks sung they 
woodent say much, father felt pretty 
big and to hear him talk you wood 
think he did the singing, he give 
them ten cents apeace. i dident get 
none, you gest wait, old man till i 
get my cornet. 

Went to a corcus last night, me 
and Beany were in the hall in the 
afternoon helping Bob Carter 
-sprinkle the floor and put on the 
sordust. the floor was all shiny with 
wax and aufully slipery. so Bob got 
us to put on some water to take off 
the shiny wax. well write in front 
of the platform there is a low plat- 
form where they get up to put in 
their votes and then step down and 
Beany said, dont put any water there 
[ 61 ] 


The Real Diary 

only jest dry sordust. so i dident, 
well that night we went erly to see 
the fun. Gim Luverin got up and 
said there was one man which was 
the oldest voter in town and he 
ought to vote the first, the name of 
this destinkuished sitizen was John 
Quincy Ann Pollard, then old mister 
Pollard got up and put in his vote 
and when he stepped down his heels 
flew up and he went down whak on 
the back of his head and 2 men lifted 
him up and lugged him to a seat, 
and then Ed Derborn, him that rings 
the town bell, stepped up pretty live- 
ly and went flat and swore terrible, 
and me and Beany nearly died we 
lafFed so. well it kept on, people 
dident know what made them fall, 
[ 62 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

and Gim Odlin sat write down in 
his new umbrella and then they sent 
me down stairs for a pail of wet sor- 
dust and when i was coming up i 
heard an auful whang, and when i 
got up in the hall they were lugging 
old mister Stickney off to die and 
they put water on his head and lug- 
ged him home in a hack, they say 
Bob Carter will lose his place, me 
' and Beany dont know what to do. 
if we dont tell, Bob will lose his place 
and if we do we will get licked. 

Mar. 12. Mister Stickney is all 
write today, gosh you bet me and 
Beany are glad. 

Mar. 13, 186- brite and fair. Mr. 
Gravel has bought old Heads carrige 
shop, he is a dandy and wears shiny 

[ 63 ] 


The Real Diary 

riding boots and a stove pipe hat and 
a velvet coat and goes with Dan 
Ranlet and George Perkins and 
Johny Gibson and the other dandies, 
i went down today and watched 
Fatty Walker stripe some wheels. 

Mar. 14. dowdy. Elkins and 
Graves had an oxion to-night. Beany 
got ten cents for going round town 
ringing a bell and hollering oxion. i 
went with Beany and it was lots of 
fun. Beany wouldent treet. he says 
he is saving money for something, i 
know what it is it is a valintine for 
Lizzie Tole. it was mean of Beany 
not to treet becaus i did as much hol- 
lering as he did. 

Mar. 15. The funniest thing hap- 
ened to-day you ever saw. after brek- 
C 64 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

fast me and father took a walk and 
then went and set down on the high 
school steps, father was telling me 
some of the things he and Gim Mel- 
cher used to do. father must have 
been a ripper when he was young, 
well ennyway while we was talking 
old Ike Shute came along through 
the school yard. Ike wears specks 
and always carries a little basket on 
his arm. he cant see very well, and 
father said to me, now you jest keep 
still and you will see some fun and 
when Ike came along father changed 
his voice so that it sounded awfully 
growly and said where in the devil 
are you going with that basket, and 
Ike was scart most to deth and said 
only a little way down here sir and 

[ 65 ] 


The Real Diary 

father said, move on sir and move 
dam lively and i nearly died laffing 
to see Ike hiper, well after a while i 
see Ike coming back with old Swane 
and old Kize the policemen, i tell 
you i was scart but father only laffed 
and said you keep still and i will fix 
it all right, so when they came up 
he said to old Kize what is the 
trouble Filander and he said Mr. 
Shute here has been thretened by 
some drunken rascal, and father 
looked aufuly surprised and said that 
is an infernal shame, when did it 
happen Isak, and Ike said about fif- 
teen minits ago and father said we 
have been here about as long as that 
and i dident see the scoundrel. ■ how 
did he look Isak, and Ike said i cood- 
[ 66 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

ent see him very well George but he 
was a big man and he had a awful 
deep voice and father said did he 
stagger enny and Ike said i coodent 
see wether he did or not but i cood 
tell he was drunk by his voice, so 
old Swain and old Kize went down 
behind the school house and olF thru 
the carrige shop yard to see if they 
cood find him, and me and father 
'walked home with Ike to protect him 
and father said now Isak if ennyone 
insults you again jest come to me 
and if i can catch him i will break 
every bone in his body, and father 
and Ike shook hands and Ike shook 
hands with me and then we went 
home and father began to lafF and 
lafFed all the way home and then he 
C 67 ] 


The Real Diary 

told mother and aunt Sarah and they 
said it was a shame to play such a 
trick upon him and father lafFed all 
the more and said Ike hadent had so 
much exercise for a year and it wood 
do him good and give him something 
to think about, ennyway they said 
it was a shame to teech me such 
things, and father said he would 
rather i wood be tuf than be like Ike, 
and Aunt Sarah said i never wood 
be half as good as Ike for he never 
did a wrong thing in his life, and 
father lafFed and said he dident dass 
to for his mother wood shet him in 
the closet, it was aufully funny, but 
i gess they was right, i shall never 
be half as good as Ike. i wonder if 
[ 68 ] 



Residence of Beany 



House once occupied by 
J. Albert Clark and Plupy 



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^ 4 



Of a Real Boy 

old Swane and old Kize have caught 
that man yet. 

Mar. 16. Pewt dreened 18 mar- 
bles and 2 chinees out of me to-day. 
we was playing first in a hole, school 
today, sailed boats in the brook in 
J. Albert Clark’s garden and got 
pretty wet. 

Mar. 17. Scott Briggam has got 
some little flying squirrels, he is go- 
ing to get me one for thirty-five 
cents, i am going to take it out of 
my cornet money. 

Mar. 18. Father wont let me play 
marbles in ernest. it aint enny fun 
dreening a feller and then giving 
them back, i bet father didnt when 
he was a boy. 


[ 69 ] 


The Real Diary 

Mar. 19. Scott Briggam brought 
my squirrel today and i paid him 35 
cents, 3 ten cents scrips and five 
cents, i have got it in a bird cage. 

Mar. 20. my squirrel got out of 
the cage last nite and father found 
him in the water pail drownded. fa- 
ther got up in the night and got a 
dipper and drank some water out of 
that pail, he dident eat any brekfast 
because he was thinking that the 
squirrel might have been in the pail 
then, i wonder if it was. ennyway 
35 cents of my cornet money has 
gone up. 

Mar. 23. school today, went 
down to Pewts to draw pictures. 
Charlie Woodbury can draw the 
best, then Pewt, and then me. 

[ 70 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

Beany dont like to draw, we was 
talking about what we was going to 
be when we grew up. Charlie Wood- 
bury is going to be a picture painter, 
Pewt is going to be a lawyer. Potter 
Gorham and Chick Chickering are 
going to stuff birds for a living. 
Beany is going to be a hack driver, 
Gim Wingit is going to run a news- 
paper, Cawcaw Harding is going to 
be a piscopal minister becaus he says 
they only have to read their speaches 
out of a book, Nipper Brown is going 
to be a professer, Priscilla Hobbs is 
going to play a organ in the baptis 
church. Prisil can play 3 tunes now 
on a little organ, i am going to be a 
cornet player like Bruce Briggam. 
cornet players can go to all the dan- 
[ 71 ] 


The Real Diary 

ces and fairs and prosessions and are 
invited in and treated when people 
are married and they serrinade them 
at night, and they don’t have to 
work either. 

Mar. 25. almost as warm as sum- 
mer, went to church and Sunday 
school. Beany has got a job blowing 
the organ for Kate Wells, he only 
let the wind go out 2 times today, 
it was funny becaus when the organ 
stopped Mister Wood who was sing- 
ing let out an auful hoot before he 
knowed what he was doing Beany 
will lose his job if he does it again. 

Mar. 29, 186- The toads has come 
out. fine warm day. me and Potter 
Gorham have been ketching toads 
this afternoon, they sit in the pud- 
[ 72 ] 



Historic Gilman House 
Residence of Fatty 












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Of a Real Boy 

les and peep, folks think it is frogs 
but most of it is toads. Potter got 
23 and i got 18. tonite i put my 
toads in a box in the kitchen after 
the folks went to bed. in the night 
they all got out of the box and be- 
gan to hop round and peep mother 
heard it and waked father and they 
lissened. when i waked up father 
was coming threw my room with a 
big cane and a little tin lamp, he 
had put on his britches and was in 
his shirt tale, and i said, what are 
you going to lick me for now i hav- 
ent done nothing and he said, keep 
still there is some one down stairs 
and mother said dont go down 
George and father said, lissen i can 
hear him giving a whistle for his con- 
[ 78 ] 


The Real Diary 

fedrit, i will jump in and give him a 
whack on the cokonut. i had forgot 
all about the toads and you bet i was 
scart. well father he crep down easy 
and blowed out his lite and opened 
the door quick and jest lammed 
round with his club, then i heard 
him say what in hell have i stepped 
on, bring a lite here, then i thought 
of the toads and you bet i was scarter 
than before, mother went down with 
a lite and then i heard him say, i 
will be cussed the whole place is full 
of toads, then mother said did you 
ever, and father said he never did, 
and it was some more of that dam 
boys works and he yelled upstairs for 
me to come down and ketch them, 
so i went down and caught them and 
[ 74 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

put them out all but 2 that father 
had stepped on and they had to be 
swep up. then all the folks came 
down in their nitegounds and i went 
up stairs lively and got into bed and 
pulled the clothes round me tite, but 
it dident do enny good for father 
came up and licked me. he dident 
lick me very hard becaus i gess he 
was glad it wasent a berglar and if it 
hadent been for me it might have 
been berglars insted of toads. 

Mar. 30. brite and fair, went out 
with Potter Gorham, saw some 
toads 2 robins and a blewbird. gosh 
it makes a feller feel good to see birds 
and toads and live things. 

Mar. 31. April fool day tomor- 
laying for Beany, old 
[ 75 ] 


row. 1 am 


The Real Diary 

Francis licked 5 fellers today becaus 
they sung rong when we was singing 
speek kindly it is better far to rule 
by luv than feer. 

April 1. auful cold and rainy, i 
was going to wright a love letter to 
Beany and sine Lizzie Toles name 
to it but i told father about it for fun 
and he said that it was fourgery and 
that i cood be prostecuted and sent 
to jale. so i dident, tonite me and 
Beany rung five door bells for april 
fool. 

April 2. been trying to get rid of 
some warts. Pewt says if you hook 
a piece of pork after dark, rub it on 
the warts and say arum erum irum 
orum urum and nurum 3 times turn 
round twice and throw the pork thru 
[ 76 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

a window, then the warts will all be 
gone the next day. me and Beany is 
going to try it tomorrow. 

April 3. brite and fair, dident get 
a chance to hook the pork. 

April 4. The band played in the 
band room to-nite. it was warm 
enuf to have the windows open and 
we cood hear it. i sat out in the 
school yard til 10 oclock to hear it 
and father came out and walked me 
home. Beany was mad becaus i cared 
more for the band than for getting 
rid of the warts. 

April 6. dident wright anything 
last nite, was too scart. i never was 
so scart in all my life before, me and 
Beany came awful near getting in 
jale. we dident know where to hook 
[ 77 ] 


The Real Diary 

the pork, i went to our cellar but 
father was down there making vini- 
gar all the evening, then we went to 
Beanys cellar but Mister Watson 
was sitting on the cellar door, so 
Beany told his father that a man was 
looking for him to see about a horse 
and Mister Watson started down to 
the club stable, then Beany hooked 
the pork and rubbed it over his warts 
and then i rubbed it over my warts 
and we said arum erum irum orum 
urum and nurum 3 times jest as Pewt 
said, turned round twice and i plug- 
ged the pork right threw a gaslite jest 
then the gasman came along, he yel- 
led at us and jumped out of his 
wagon and went for us. we ran down 
threw the school yard as fast as we 
[ 78 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

cood hiper, there is a hollow in the 
corner of the school yard by Bill Mor- 
rills back yard and there is a little hole 
in the bottom of the fence where the 
fellers crawl threw when the football 
goes into his garden, we skinned 
threw that hole jest in time, the 
gasman tried to crawl threw but he 
coodent, then he dim the high fence 
but while he was doing that we ran 
across the carrige factory yard and 
down by the old brewery up Bow 
street and home, i went to bed 
pretty lively and so did Beany, gosh 
but we was scart. 

April 7. One of Beanys warts has 
gone. 

April 8. brite and fair, my warts 
have not gone. 


[ 79 ] 


The Real Diary 

April 9. brite and fair, my warts 
have not gone. 

April 10. Clowdy but no rane. 
my warts have not gone. 

April 11. rany. i have got 2 more 
warts, i gess i hadent ought to have 
broke that gaslite. 

April 12. i have got another. 

April 13. bully day. me and Pot- 
ter Gorham and Chick Chickering 
went out after toads today, i got 14 
but i dident take them home you 
bet. 

April 15. Brite and fair, we all 
went to church today to see the 
Lanes, they come from New York 
and when they go to church every- 
body goes to see them, there was a 
[ 80 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

boy with them named Willie, i bet 
i cood lick him. 

April 16. Nothing particular to- 
day. dont feel very well, kind of 
headaky and backaky. 

April 20. have been sick for 4 
days, went to school monday and 
had to come home, when i got home 
i fell down on the steps and mother 
and aunt Sarah came out and got me 
in the house and put water on my 
head and rubbed my hands, and then 
the Docter came and said, well Jo- 
anna, children are a good deel of 
truble and then he felt of my rist 
and said hum, and then he looked at 
my tung and said hum again, and 
then he pride open my mouth and 
[ 81 ] 


The Real Diary 

looked down my throte and said 
hum, and then he pulled off my elose 
and looked me over rite before 
mother and aunt Sarah and said well 
he aint spekled eny. then he said 
what have you given him Joanna 
and mother said, nothing, and the 
docter said, all right give him some 
more, and mother said i havent giv- 
en him enything doeter, and then he 
walked around the room and picked 
up some things and looked at them 
and then he gave me some of the 
wirst tasting stuff i ever took, then 
he said i gess he will be better to- 
morrow, and then he looked, at some 
more things and went home, i did- 
ent sleep very well that nite but was 
auful hot and my head aked fearful. 

[ 82 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

mother was in my room every time 
i waked up, and Sarah too. next day 
i had the doeter again he looked at 
some pictures and things and told 
mother to give me some more, i al- 
ways feel better when the doeter 
comes in. he dont scare a feller to 
deth. 

Well the next day i felt a little 
better and tried to sit up and have 
my britches on, but i had to lay 
down again my head aked so, and 
after awhile my head felt better and 
as i laid there i could look out of the 
window and it seamed as if little 
chains that you could see through 
like glass, were floating up and down, 
they were about an inch long, well 
i wached them till i almost went to 
[ 83 ] 


The Real Diary 

sleep and jest as i was most asleep i 
heard Beany out in the street holler, 
say Pewt, did you know that Plupy 
is going to die, and Pewt said course 
i did, why dont you tell me some 
news, and Beany said i heard he 
swalowed a peech stone and Pewt 
said it was liver complaint, and then 
i heard some one say, you boys shet 
up. 

Gosh you bet i was scart. i had- 
ent thought of dying, i began to 
howl and holler for mother, she 
came running in and i told her i was 
going to die and i told her about 
breaking the gaslite and a lot of 
other things and she told me the 
docter said i was getting better and i 
wood sit up tomorrow, well i felt 
[ 84 ] 



Old High School Building 

Where Johii}^” Gibson taught and fought 



Double House Residence of 

Residence of Pewt W. Perry Moulton 

and Nipper 


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Of a Real Boy 

better then and wished i hadent told 
mother about the gaslite becaus i 
knew she wood make me tell father, 
well mother set by my bed all the 
afternoon and read me some out 
of Billy Bolegs, jest think of her 
doing that, so when supper time 
came i et a lettle tost and had some 
current jelly, when father come 
home mother told him about the 
gaslite and all he said was i wood 
have to pay for it out of my cornet 
money, i thought he wood keep me 
in for a month, i gess mother must 
have talked to him. 

that nite father slep on a lounge 
in my room, i went to sleep most as 
soon as he come in. after awhile i 
dremp i was tied on a sawlog jest go- 
[ 85 ] 


The Real Diary 

ing nearer and nearer to the saw and 
the saw was a going skratch-zoo, 
skratch-zoo, skratch-zoo. well i tride 
to pull away but i coodent move and 
i tride to holler and i coodent make 
a yip, and jest before the saw sawed 
into me i woke up. gosh you bet i 
was glad, but the funny part was 
that i could hear the saw going 
skratch-zoo, skratch-zoo, skratch- 
zoo, and what do you think it was. 
it was father snoring, gosh you 
ought to have heard him. well at 
first i lafFed, but by and by i wanted 
to go to sleep and father snoring so 
loud i coodent till mother came in 
and told him to go to bed and she 
laid on the sofa all nite. the next 
day i set up and had my britches on 
[ 86 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

and set up to the window all day. i 
saw Beany and Pewt and i nocked 
on the window and waved my claw 
at them, i am going out tomorrow. 

April 22. i went out today, it 
was real warm, i dident go to 
church becaus i had been sick, i let 
my rooster out to fite J. Albert 
Clark’s, they were fiting good when 
i looked up and there was father 
looking over the fence, he made me 
stop the fite and shet my rooster up. 
i wonder if he wood have stoped 
them if i hadent been there, i got 2 
eggs today, the old brama that i 
swaped for with Ed Tole and a bol- 
ten gray that John Adams give me. 

April 23. i went to school today, 
i dident have to resite becaus i had 
[ 87 ] 


The Real Diary 

been sick, if i dont get wirse i can 
go to Mis Packerds concert tomorow. 
hope it wont rane. 

April 24 . brite and fair and it did- 
ent rane tonite, so i went to the con- 
cert. all the girls was flowers. Keene 
was a crocuss and had to come out 
and sing first becaus the crocuss is 
the first flower that comes out. she 
sung i am the first of all the flowers 
to greet the eyes of spring. 

Jenny Morison was a tuch me not 
and set in the top of a rock and sung 
tuch me not, tuch me not let me 
alone. Nell Tole was.a piny or a sun- 
flower i have forgot whitch. Jenny 
Morison and Keene and Nell Tole 
are the best singers for their size in 
town, father thinks Keene can sing 
[ 88 3 


Of a Real Boy 

the best, he feels pretty big about 
Keene, i told him so one day and he 
said he had to becaus i dident 
amount to enything. i think Jenny 
Morison can sing the best but dont 
tell him so for he wood give me a 
bat. 

April 25, 186- Cant go down town 
for a week becaus i sassed J. Albert 
Clark, that is J. Albert Clark says i 
sassed him but i dident. Beany had 
been working for J. Albert raking up 
leaves in his garden. J. Albert was 
a going to give him 10 cents for it 
and me and Beany was a going to 
divide up on goozeberries and juju 
paist, but Beany dident dass to ask 
J. Albert for his pay because he had 
raked all the leaves under J. Alberts 
[ 89 ] 


The Real Diary 

front steps and he was afraid J, Al- 
bert wood find out about it and not 
pay him. Beany wanted me to ask 
him but i dident dass to because i let 
my rooster out to fite J. Alberts last 
Sunday and J. Albert dont believe 
in fiting roosters, last night he was 
setting on his steps with some com- 
pany and he had on his best lavender 
britches and his best blew coat. 

So Beany said, tell you what Plu- 
py, you set on your steps and i will 
set on my steps and we will holler 
across the street about the money 
that J. Albert owes me. So Beany 
he went across the street to his steps 
and he hollered over, hi there Plupy 
have you got any chink, and i hol- 
lered back, no Beany i havent got a 
[ 90 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

cent, and Beany he hollered i shood 
have 10 cents if J. Albert Clark 
wood pay me what he owes me, and 
i hollered why in time dont he pay 
you, and Beany hollered i gess he 
hasent got any chink, and i hollered 
he has probably spent all his ehink 
in buying them lavender britches, 
and Beany he hollered, well if J. 
Albert Clark needs the money more 
than I do he can have it. well while 
we was hollering mister Head and 
the Head girls who was setting on 
their steps got up and went into the 
house lading, and the company at 
J. Alberts all lathed, and J. Albert 
came down and beckoned to Beany 
and Beany he went running over to 
get his 10 cents and J. Albert he 
[ 91 ] 


The Real Diary 

said, Elbridge, that is Beanys name, 
Elbridge you cood have your money 
enny time if you had asked me for it 
decently, but now i shall not pay 
you for a week and i shall not imploy 
you enny more. Tell you what. 
Beany came over to my steps feeling 
pretty cheap and we was talking 
about it when mother called me in 
and sent me up stairs, and said she 
wood tell father as soon as he came 
home. So i went up stairs and 
looked out of the window jest in time 
to see Beanys father lugging Beany 
in by the neck. Well that nite after 
father got home he jawed me and 
said i coodent go down town for a 
week and made me go to J. Alberts 
right before the company and ask his 
[ 92 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

forgiveness, and Beany had to to. J. 
Albert was a pretty good fellow and 
said it was all right, and dident want 
our fathers not to let us go down 
town, but father said i must learn to 
be respectable to my elders. Gosh 
we dident know J. Albert was a el- 
der. We knowed elder Stevens and 
elder Stewart and deacon Gooch and 
we always was respectable to them, 
and if we had knowed that J. Albert 
Clark was a elder we woodent have 
sassed him for nothing. 

April 26. Yesterday and day be- 
fore it was brite and fair, and yester- 
day was as warm as summer, today 
it was cold and it snowed a little, 
jest enuf to make the ground look 
as if it was covered with salt, the 
[ 93 ] 


The Real Diary 

birds looked all humped up. i bet 
the frogs hind legs is about froze, it 
is raining now. if i was a frog i 
woodent come out of the mud until 
summer, perhaps they cant stay un- 
der more than six months. 

April 27. Warm again. 2 eggs 
today, i have got another hen. 
Willyam Perry Molton gave it to 
me. it is a leghorn and his other 
hens licked it and made its comb 
bludy and so he gave it to me. it was 
on the nest today but did not lay. i 
went to church. Mr. Cram preech- 
ed. he talked all about birds and 
flowers and i liked it. 

April 28. brite and fair, all 3 hens 
were on the nest but dident lay. 

April 29. no eggs today, mother 
[ 94 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

said the hens cackled all the morn- 
ing. brite and fair. 

April 30. i dont see what the 
mater is with my hens, i havent got 
1 egg this week, father said there 
was a rat in the koop. i got a steel 
trap of Sam Diar and tonite i set it 
in the koop. i put a peace of cheeze 
on it. tomorrow morning i ges mis- 
ter rat wont steal any more eggs. 

May 1. what do you think, this 
morning i got up to get my rat and 
i found that my best hen, the bolton 
gray that John Adams gave me had 
tried to pick the cheeze out of the 
trap and the trap had caught her by 
the neck and killed her. i felt most 
bad enuf to cry. i thought i cood 
get up before the hen did. i went to 
[ 95 ] 


The Real Diary 

the may brekfast today, it was may- 
fair day and they had a brekfast. 
me and Pewt, Beany, Whacker and 
Pozzy Chadwick, Micky Gould, Pop 
Clark, Prisilla Hobbs, Chick Chick- 
ering. Potter Gorham, Pile Wood, 
Curly Conner and all the fellers were 
there, we had a good time and et 
till just before school time and we 
had to hiper so as not to be late. 

May 2. no eggs today, both hens 
went on the nest, i am going to lay 
for that rat with my bowgun. 

May 3. what do you think, this 
noon i set in the hen koop 1 hour, 
the brama went on the nest and set 
a while and came olF and cakled. 
then i looked and she had lade an 
egg. i left the egg there and hid be- 
[ 96 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

hind a barrel and got my bowgun 
ready for the rat. well the leghorn 
hen went on the nest and i suposed 
she was a going to lay, but she broke 
rite into that egg and began to gob- 
ble it up. i was so mad that i let 
ding at her with the bowgun and 
just then she stuek up her head and 
the arrow took her rite in the baek 
of the head, well i wish you eood 
have seen her. she hollered one little 
pip and then went rite out of the 
nest backwards and flapped round 
awful, i picked her up and she was 
dead, i dident mean to kill her, i 
only wanted to make her jump and 
learn her not to eat eggs. O dear, i 
dont know what father will say when 
he flnds it out. 


[ 97 ] 


The Real Diary 

May 5, 186- Saw a bully file to- 
day. Cris Staples and Charlie Clark. 
Charlie is visiting his uncle J. Albert 
Clark, the feller that we sassed. that 
is he said we did but we dident. 
Charlie is a city feller, he lives in 
Chelsy and think he knows a pile 
about things and gets mad if we call 
him names, now every feller who 
amounts to anything has a nick- 
name, and some of them have 2 or 
3. my nicknames are Plupy and 
Skinny and Polelegs, "and Beany is 
called Bullethead and sometimes 
Fatty, i told Charlie that if i called 
him Charlie the fellers would call 
him sissy or Mary and he better 
agree to let me call him bulldog or 
tomcat or diddly or gobbler or some 
[ 98 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

nickname whitch wood mean some- 
thing. but he said he would lam the 
head off of enny feller which called 
him names. 

well you jest see what trouble he 
got into for not having a nickname, 
he would have knowed better than 
.jthat if he hadent lived in Chelsy. 

Well today me and Charlie was 
setting on his steps. Beany was mad 
because i was going with Charlie and 
he had gone riding with his father 
and he felt pretty big because his 
father let him drive, well while we 
were setting there along came Cris 
Staples who carries papers for Lane 
and Rollins store, and Cris hollered 
over, hullo Polelegs. Charlie hadent 
heard enyone call me Polelegs. and 

[ 99 ] 


t 


The Real Diary 

i said, i woodent stand that if i was 
youX^harlie, now less see you lam 
the head off of him, and Charlie 
he started aeross the road and walk- 
ed up to Cris and said who in time 
are you ealling Polelegs and Cris 
wasent going to baek down and said, 
you, and Charlie said jest drop them 
papers and i will nock your face rite 
off, and Cris dropped his papers and 
they went at it. it was the best fite 
i have seen this year, they fit from 
Mr. Head’s down to Gim Ellisons 
corner, and Cris licked time out of 
Charlie, and Charlie began to yell 
and give up and then Cris let go of 
his hair and told him he was to 
smart, and that it was me he was 
calling Polelegs and not him, and he 
[ 100 ] 




Front Street 

P]nlli})s Academy on both sides 




Of a Real Boy 

better not be so smart another time, 
and Cris he picked up his papers and 
went off with a great slit in his jac- 
ket and his necktie way round on 
one side, and Charlie came home 
howling and Aunt Clark, Charlie’s 
grandmother came out and said, that 
is what you get Charlie for quareling. 
see how much better Harry feels, and 
i said, yes mam. Charlie is never go- 
ing to speak to me again. 

May 7- Beany was pretty mad 
when I told him about the fite be- 
cause he dident see it. i gess he will 
find it don’t pay to get mad with 
me. i saw Charlie today but he did- 
ent speak, he has got a black eye. 
Cris has got a funny looking nose on 
one side. 


[ 101 ] 


The Real Diary 

May 8. Chitter Robinson went in 
swiming today, i bet it was cold. 

May 9. Went down to the high 
school yard tonite to hear the band 
play, they have got a new leader a 
Mister Ashman of Boston, he can 
play the cornet with 1 hand, i went 
down today to pay the gasman for 
the gaslite i broke, it cost 1 dollar 
and i have only got 87 cents for my 
cornet, sometimes i dont believe i 
shall ever get that cornet. Scott 
Brigam can blow a bugle, a bugle 
is like a cornet only a cornet has 3 
keys and a bugle is all covered with 
flappers and curly things where you 
put your fingers. Rashe Belnap can 
play a cornet splendid but he dont 
play very often. Frank Hirvey plays 
[ 102 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

one that goes over his shoulder way 
behind his back, gosh i wish i cood 
get a cornet. ^ , 

May 10. father has found but 
about my killing that hen. he did- 
ent get mad but said i ought to have 
cut her head off and she wood te 
good to eat, but i supose it is to late 
now for it is almost a week ago and 
i hurried her the next day. 

May 11. me and Potter Gorham 
went mayflowering today, i got a 
bunch and sold them to a student 
named Chizzum for 35 cents, i put 
it with my cornet money, i have 
now got $1.22. i can get a cornet 
for 25 dollars a second hand one. i 
am afraid i shall never get that cor- 
net. 


[ 103 ] 


The Real Diary 

May 12. Rany last nite and this 
morning, in the afternoon it cleared 
up. gosh i wish you cood see the 
licking Beany got tonite. me and 
Beany went out to go up to see 
Pewt and make some sweet fern si- 
gars. Beany came over for me and 
went up to Pewts. on the way Bea- 
ny went up an rung his doorbell and 
we hid behind the fence and Mister 
Watson, Beany’s father, came out 
holding a light and shading it with 
his hand, the wind blew the lite out 
and in going in again he hit his head 
an awful bump against the door, me 
and Beany nearly died laffing only 
we tride not to lafF too loud, well 
we went up to Pewts and Pewt had 
been sent to bed for something and 

[ 104 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

so we started back and met a man 
who said is this you Elbridge, it was 
pretty dark and Beany said yes and 
Mister Watson grabbed us both by 
the collar and said, so you are the 
boys who rung my doorbell and then 
he give Beany a rap on the side of 
the head and began to shake him 
round lively and while he was shak- 
ing Beany up i put for home, i hid 
behind the fence and i cood hear him 
say i will learn you to asosiate with 
that misable Shute boy and wast 
your time ringing doorbells, and Bea- 
ny was saying, o father i will never 
do it again, i nearly died laffing to 
hear Beany a rattling round on the 
sidewalk, i hope Mister Watson 
wont tell father, i gess he wont for 
[ 105 ] 


The Real Diary 

he gets over his mad pretty quick, 
every time i think of Beanys legs fly- 
ing round in the air i giggle rite out 
and when i think of Mister Watson 
bumping his head i nearly die. some- 
times i think it pays to be tuff! 

May 13, 186- Keene and Cele have 
got some new crokay slippers, you 
bet they feel pretty big about it. 

May 14. nothing particular to- 
day. 

May 15. Went in swimming to- 
day. the water was pretty cold but 
i swum acros the river twise. 

May 16. the suckers have come. 
Potter Gorham caught three yester- 
day. me and Potter was going yes- 
terday after school but father wood- 
[ 106 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

ent let me becaus i dident split my 
kindlings. 

May 17. the band played tonight, 
father made me go to bed at nine 
but i cood hear it becaus my window 
is jest acros the road, they are play- 
ing a new peace, it is the woodup 
quickstep, they say Ned Kendall 
cood play it on a bugle better than 
ennybody. old Robinson cood and 
Mister Ashman can play it splendid, 
it goes 

ta-ta tata, ta-ta tata, ta-ta tata 
tatatatatatata. 
ta-te-ta-te-tiddle iddle-a 
ta-te-ta-te-tiddle iddle-a 
ta-te-ta-te-tiddle-iddle-a 
tiddle-iddle-iddle-iddle-ata 
[ 107 ] 


The Real Diary 

it is the best peace they play except 
departed days, that always makes 
me feel like crying it is kinder sad 
like, i hope i can get my cornet 
some day. 

May 19. had a auful toothake to- 
day and had to go down to docter 
Pitman and he pulled it out. i tell 
you it hurt. Docter Pitman said 
the roots must have reached way to 
the back of my neck. Beany went 
with me and then told all round that 
i hollered, you jest wait Beany. 

May 21. erly this afternoon me 
and Fatty Melcher got some real se- 
gars at Henry Simsons store and 
went down behind old man Chur- 
chills store and smoked them, we 
were both auful sick and laid there 
[ 108 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

all the afternoon, when i went home 
i walked wobbly and mother asked 
me if i was sick and she put me to 
bed and was going to send for the 
docter, but father came in and when 
he found out what aled me he laffed 
and said it served me rite, then after 
supper he set out on the steps rite 
under my window and smoked a old 
pipe and i cood smell it and i thought 
i shood die. then mother asked him 
to go away and he lafFed and said all 
rite, but he gessed i had enuf for one 
day and she said she gessed so and i 
gess so too. he said if it hadent made 
me sick he wood have licked me. 

i dont see why it is so, father 
swears sometimes when he hits his 
thum with a hammer and once when 
[ 109 ] 


The Real Diary 

he was in the dark he was walking 
towards the door with his arms out 
to feel for the door, one arm went on 
one side of the door and the other 
arm on the other side and he hit his 
nose a fearful bump rite on the ege 
of the door, and i wish you cood have 
heard him swear, well if i swear he 
licks me, and he smokes and if i do 
he says he will lick me and he dont 
go to church and if i dont go he says 
he will lick me. O dear i gess i wont 
smoke enny more. 

May 22. Went in swimming to- 
day twise, once down to the raceway 
and once up to the gravel. 

May 23. Went butterflying with 
Chick Chickering today, it is a little 
early for them, but we got two blew 
C no ] 


Of a Real Boy 

and black ones and three little red 
ones. Me and Chick are making 
aquariams. Chick has got a splendid 
glass one. i made mine out of a but- 
ter firkin, i sawed it off half way and 
then washed it out with soft soap 
and rensed it 2 or 3 times and then i 
put in some white sand and stones 
and i have got some little minnies 
and kivies and a little pickerel, it 
looks splendid and i change the 
water every 3 days. 

May 24. Nothing particular to- 
day. 

May 25. i can swim under water 
from the big tree on Moulton’s side 
of the river at the gravel to the tree 
on the bank on Gilman’s side, i 
went in 3 times today. 

[ 111 ] 


The Real Diary 

May 26. My rooster is sick, i gess 
he has et something, he sits all 
humped up. i went in swimming 2 
times today. 

May 27. My rooster is pretty sick, 
i tride to give him some kiann pep- 
per tonite. father said kiann pepper 
was good for sick hens, so i held his 
mouth open and give him a spoonful, 
when i let him go he kept his mouth 
open and sorter sneezed pip -craw 
pip-craw pip-craw, and then he went 
to the water dish and began to drink, 
i think he is better because he had- 
ent drank any water for 2 days be- 
fore. he was still drinking when i 
went away, i gess he will be a lot 
better tomorrow. 

May 28. What do you think, this 

[ 112 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

morning when i went out to feed 
my hens i found my rooster dead, 
he had drank up all the water and he 
was all puffed up. i felt pretty bad. 
father says i gave him enuf kiann 
pepper for a horse, he aught to have 
told me. he was a pretty good roos- 
ter too. i am having pretty tuff 
luck. 

May 29. i read over my diary to- 
day. i have forgot to tell whether it 
was brite and fair or rany, i cant say 
now. 

May 30, 186- Nothing particular 
today, brite and fair. 

May 31. brite and fair, went up 
to Whacker Chadwicks today after 
school to help him plant his garden, 
we had about a bushel of potatoes to 
[ 113 ] 


The Real Diary 

plant and it was fun to sit round a 
basket and cut up the potatoes, af- 
ter a while Gim Erly and Luke Man- 
nux cume along and we began to 
plug potatoes at them, they plugged 
them back and we had a splendid 
fite, me and Whack and Pozzy and 
Boog Chadwick on one side and Gim 
Erly and Luke Mannux and Bob 
Ridly on the other. Luke Mannux 
hit me twice rite in the back of the 
head, i am going up tomorrow to 
help them some more, went in swim- 
ming once to-day. 

May 32 no i mean June 1. i went 
up to Chadwicks after school. Cap- 
tin Chadwick was there and they 
wasent enny pluggin potatoes, went 
in swimming. 


[ 114 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

June 2. Rany. Beany is mad with 
me. i dont care. 

June 3. went to church today. 

June 4. dowdy but no rane. went 
up to Chadwicks today and sawed 
wood. Boog and Pozzy fit while me 
and Whack sawed wood then we 
went in swiming down to Sandy 
Bottom, some body tide some hard 
gnots in my shirt, i forgot to split 
my kindlings tonite. 

June 5. brite and fair. Beany is 
still mad. 

June 6. brite and fair, i know 
what Beany is mad about, he thinks 
i told about his getting a licking, i 
dident tell, he can stay mad if he 
wants to. 

June 7. father has bought a horse 
[ 115 ] 


The Real Diary 

of Dan Randlet. i rode up to Brent- 
wood with Sam Diar to get it. it is 
the prettiest horse i ever saw. i rode 
it down from Brentwood and it goes 
jest as easy as sitting on a spring 
board, when i got home Beany got 
over his mad and came over and i 
gave him a ride, me and Beany 
never were mad so long before. 

June 9. Rany. this afternoon me 
and Beany and father went to ride 
with the new horse, her name is 
Nellie. 

June 10. brite and fair, we keep 
Nellie down to Jo Hanes stable. 
Frank Hanes is learning me how to 
clean her off. she nipped my arm to- 
day and made a black and blew spot, 
went in swimming today. 

[ 116 ] 



Kntrfince to Kddy Woods 












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Of a Real Boy 

i have to get up every morning 
and harnes Nelly and drive father to 
the depot, i like it because i always 
race with the men coming down 
front street, there is George Dergin 
and Fred Sellivan and Gim Wingit 
and i can beat them all. i dont tell 
father that i race, i rode Nellie this 
afternoon with Frank Hanes and Ed 
Tole. i dident go in' swimming to- 
day. 

June 11. brite and fair. Nellie 
kicked me today, i gess i scrached 
her today to hard with the cury- 
comb. it dident hurt me much, i 
went in swimming twise. 

June 12. brite and fair. Me and 
Chick Chickering went bullfroging 
today, we got 3 dozen hind legs and 
[ 117 ] 


The Real Diary 

sold them to Mr. Hirvey for 30 cents 
and took our pay in icecream. 

June 13. Rode Nellie this noon, i 
have to go to the half past five train 
every nite for father, i like to drive 
but i dont like to go every nite. 

June 14. Rashe Belnap and Hor- 
ris Cobbs go in swimming every 
morning at six o’clock, i got a lick- 
ing today that beat the one Beany 
got. last summer me and Tomtit 
Tomson and Cawcaw Harding and 
Whack and Poz and Boog Chadwick 
went in swimming in May and all 
thru the summer until October, one 
day i went in 10 times, well i dident 
say anything about it to father so as 
not to scare him. well today he did- 
ent go to Boston and he said i am 
[ 118 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

going to teech you to swim, when i 
was as old as you i cood swim said he, 
and you must lern, i said i have been 
wanting to lern to swim, for all the 
other boys can swim, so we went 
down to the gravil and i peeled off 
my close and got ready, now said he, 
you jest wade in up to your waste and 
squat down and duck your head un- 
der. i said the water will get in my 
nose, he said no it wont jest squat 
rite down, i cood see him laffin when 
he thought i wood snort and sputter. 

so i waded out' a little ways and 
then div in and swam under water 
most across, and when i came up i 
looked to see if father was supprised. 
gosh you aught to have seen him. 
he had pulled off his coat and vest 
[ 119 ] 


The Real Diary 

and there he stood up to his waste 
in the water with his eyes jest bug- 
ging rite out as big as hens eggs, and 
he was jest a going to dive for my 
dead body, then i turned over on 
my back and^ waved my hand at him. 
he dident say anything for a minute, 
only he drawed in a long breth. then 
he began to look foolish, and then 
mad, and then he turned and started 
to slosh back to the bank where he 
slipped and went in all over. When 
he got to the bank he was pretty 
mad and yelled for me to come out. 
when i came out he cut a stick and 
whaled me, and as soon as i got home 
he sent me to bed for lying, but i 
gess he was mad becaus i about scart 
the life out of him. but that nite i 
[ 120 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

heard him telling mother about it 
and he said that he div 3 times for 
me in about thirty feet of water, but 
he braged about my swiming and 
said i cood swim like a striped frog, 
i shall never forget how his boots 
went kerslosh kerslosh kerslosh when 
we were skinning home thru cros- 
lots. i shall never forget how that 
old stick hurt either, ennyhow he 
dident say ennything about not go- 
ing in again, so i gess i am all rite. 

June 15, 186- Johnny Heeld, a 
student, came to me and wanted me 
to carry some tickets to a dance 
round to the girls in the town, there 
was about 1 hundred of them, he read 
the names over to me and i said i 
knew them all. so after school me 
[ 121 ] 


The Real Diary 

and Beany started out and walked 
all over town and give out the tick- 
ets. i had a long string of names 
and every time i wood leave one i 
wood mark out the name, i dident 
give the Head girls any because they 
told father about some things that 
me and Beany and Pewt did and the 
Parmer girls and the Cilley girls liv- 
ed way up on the plains and i dident 
want to walk up there, so when i 
went over to Hemlock side to give 
one, i went over to the factory board- 
ing house and give some to them, 
they was auful glad to get them too 
and said they would go to the dance, 
some people was not at home and so 
i gave their tickets to the next house, 
it took me till 8 o’clock and i got 1 
[ 122 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

dollar for it. i dont beleive those 
girls that dident get their tickets 
will care much about going ennyway. 
i gess the Head girls wont want to 
tell on me another time. 

June 16 . Dennis Cokely and 
Tomtit Tomson had a fite behind 
Hirvey’s resterent today. Hirvey 
stopped them jest as they were hav- 
ing a good one. Thats jest the way. 
i dont see why they always want to 
stop a fite. All fellers fite for is to 
see which can lick, and how can they 
tell unless they fite it out. 

June 17. Brite and fa^. They is 
going to be a big cattle show here 
this fall. They are going to have it 
in a field up by the depot. They are 
going to have horse trots and shows 
[ 123 ] 


The Real Diary 

and everything. We are going to 
have no school, it dont come for an 
auful while yet. Charles Taylor is 
going to have Nelly to ride. 

June 18. Me and Mickey Gould 
had a race horseback, he had one of 
Ben Merril’s little black horses, we 
raced way round Kensington ring, i 
cood beat trotting and he cood beat 
running, when i got home Nelly 
was so swetty that father told me 
not to ride her for a week. 

June 19. Went up to Chadwicks 
after school. Boog and Whack got 
Willie fiting with Johnny Rogers. 
W illie licked him. W illie is Whack ’ s 
little brother, he is a auful cunning 
little feller, he can fite too. all the 
Chadwick’s can fite. 

[ 124 J 


Of a Real Boy 

June 20. Brite and fair, i am go- 
ing fishing tonite with Potter Gor- 
ham. 

June 21. brite and fair, went 
fishing today with Potter Gorham, 
i cought 5 pirch and 4 pickeril. i 
cleaned them and we had them for 
supper, father said they was the best 
fish he ever et. i also cought the 
biggest roach i ever saw, almost as 
big as a sucker, and i cant tell what 
i did with him. i thought Potter 
had hooked him for fun, but he said 
he dident, and we hunted every- 
where for him. i dont know where i 
put that roach. 

June 22. the students had their 
dance last nite. they had a auful 
time, some of the girls which dident 
[ 125 ] 


The Real Diary 

get no tickets was mad, and the 
students which wanted them to go 
was mad and they went to Johnny 
Heeld and give him time, then he 
went round and told them how it 
was and give them tickets, well the 
nite of the dance everything was all 
rite until lots of people came which 
hadent been on the list, but which 
we had given tickets, well the stu- 
dents dident want to let them in and 
they were mad, and Chick Randal 
hit a student named Pendry rite in 
the nose and nocked his glasses off 
and Nichols nocked Johnny Lord 
way acros the entry and they was 
going to have a big fite when Bob 
Carter and 2 or 3 men stoped it. to- 
day Johnny Heeld came down to 
[ 126 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

the house and said i had got things 
all mixed up and father made me 
give back the dollar, but he told 
Johnny Heeld he hadent ought to 
have let me try such a hard job. 
Gosh, i am glad father thinks it was 
a mistake, and dont know that i did 
it on purpose. 

June 23. there is a dead rat in the 
wall in my room, it smells auful. 

June 24. Rany. most time for 
vacation, the smell in my room is 
fearful. 

June 25. more trouble today, it 
seems as if there wasent any use in 
living, nothing but trouble all the 
time, mother said i coodent sleep in 
that room until the rat was taken 
out. well father he came into my 
[ 127 ] 


The Real Diary 

' room and sniffed once and said, 
whew, what a almity smell, then 
he held his nose and went out and 
came back with mister Staples the 
father of the feller that called me 
Polelegs. well he came in and put 
his nose up to the wall and sniffed 
round until he came to where my 
old close hung, then he said, thun- 
der George, this is the place, rite be- 
hind this jacket, it is the wirst smell 
i ever smelt, then he threw my close 
in a corner and took out his tools 
and began to dig a hole in the wall, 
while father and mother and aunt 
Sarah stood looking at him and hold- 
ing their nose, after he dug the hole 
he reached in but dident find enny- 
thing, then he stuck in his nose and 
[ 128 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

said, it dont smell enny in there, 
then they all let go of their nose and 
took a snitF and said murder it is 
wirse than ever it must be rite in the 
room somewhere, then father said 
to me, look in those close and see if 
there is ennything there, so i looked 
and found in the poket of my old 
jaket that big roach that i lost, 
when i went fishing with Potter 
Gorham, it was all squashy and 
smelt auful. father was mad and 
made me throw the jaket out of the 
window and wont let me go fishing 
for a week, ennyway i know now 
what became of my roach. 

June 26. Keene and Cele are go- 
ing to sing in the Unitarial quire, 
father says he will give them some 
[ 129 ] 


The Real Diary 

bronze boots, mother got them some 
new nets for their hair today, girls 
has lots more done for them than 
fellers. 

June 27, 186- Brite and fair, 
school closed today, we dont have 
enny more school til September, 
snapcrackers have come. 8 cents a 
bunch at old Langlys store. Lane 
and Rollins sell them for 10 cents, 
torpedos 8 cents a bunch, pin wheels 
1 cent each. Pewt is going to have 
a cannon, father wont let me have 
a cannon, he says i dont know enny 
more than to look into it and blow 
my head off! 

June 28. dowdy but no rane. 4th 
of July pretty soon, father says 
when he was a boy all they had for 
[ 130 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

fireworks was balls of wool soaked in 
tirpentine whitch they lit and fired 
round, i am glad i did not live 
then. 

June 30. dowdy but no rane. 
went in swimming 3 times today, i 
am going bullfroging monday. 

June 31. no July 1. Went to 
church today. 

July 2. i went bullfroging today, 
thunder storm today. 

i have got 10 bunches of snapcrack- 
ers and some slowmatch. i spent a 
dolar of my cornet money, i gess i 
shall never get that cornet, i hope 
it wont rane the 4th. 

July 3. Nite before 4th. Pewt and 
Beany can stay out all nite. father 
took my snapcrackers into his room 
[ 131 ] 


The Real Diary 

and said if i get up before 5 i cant 
have enny. 

July 4. i am to tired to wright 
enny thing, i never had so much 
fun in my life, i only got burned 5 
times. 1 snapcracker went off rite 
in my face and i coodent see enny- 
thing til mother washed my eyes 
out. Zee Smith fired a torpedo and 
a peace of it flew rite in the corner 
of my eye and made a blew spot 
there, i fired every one of my 
snapcrackers. it took me all 
day. 

July 5. brite and fair, i dident 
wake up today til 10 o’clock, i was 
pretty sore and my eyes felt as if they 
was sawdust in them. 

July 6. brite and fair, father staid 
[ 132 ] 



K(kl}v Woods 

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Of a Real Boy 

home today, i wanted him to go 
fishing but he woodent. 

July 7. father told me i cood go 
fishing and stay all day. i dont know 
what had come over him becaus most 
always he raises time when i go fish- 
ing and dont come home erly. so i 
went and cought 3 pickerels and 4 
pirch and 2 hogbacks and went in 
swiming 2 times, well as i was a 
coming home 2 or 3 people met me 
and said they was company at my 
house, so when i got home i skined 
in the back way so as not to see the 
company til i got on my best britch- 
es, but i met father in the door and 
he told me to go rite up to mothers 
room and see the company, so i 
skined up to her room holding my 
C 133 ] 


The Real Diary 

hand behind me becaus i had tore my 
britches auful getting over a fence 
and i dident want the company to 
see. well what do you think the 
company was. it was the homliest 
baby you ever see, it looked jest like 
a munky and made feerful faces and 
kinder squeaked like. Mother was 
sick and they was a old fat woman 
who told me to go out, but mother 
said she wanted to see me and she 
kissed me and asked me to kiss the 
baby, i dident want to but i did it 
becaus mother was sick, mother 
asked me how many fish i caught 
and what kind and i told her and said 
she shood have some for her supper, 
but she said she gessed she woodent 
have enny jest then. 

[ 134 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

then i went down stairs and father 
said did i like the baby and i said it 
was homly, and he said it was 10 
tirrfes as good looking as i was and 
he said he was glad that when the 
baby grode up it woodent have Beany 
and Pewt to play with and woodent 
be tulFlike me, and then Aunt Sarah 
said she gessed me and Beany and 
Pewt wasent enny tufFer than father 
and Gim Melcher were when they 
was boys, and then father lafFed and 
told me to go to bed and i went, 
that was a auful homly baby enny- 
way. 

July 8. nothing particular today, 
you bet that baby can howl, went 
to church. 

July 9. brite and fair, most every 

[ 135 ] 


The Real Diary 

morning we go up in mothers room 
to see the old fat woman wash the 
baby and hear it howl, it turns black 
in the face, i bet it will be a titer. 

July 10. i have got a new nick- 
name. it is yallerlegs. that is becaus 
father bought me a pair of kinder 
yellow britches, and made me wear 
them, i bet he woodent like to be 
called yallerlegs. 

July 11. brite and fair, went in 
swiming today to a new place, we 
call it the stump, it is up by the 
eddy. 

July 12. a thunder storm, in the 
afternoon went fishing but dident 
get a bite. Pewts father says fish 
wont bite after a thunder storm. 

July 13. a auful hot day. tonite 
[ 136 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

i went up to the depot to see Majer 
Blake and Charles Tole fite over pas- 
sengers to the beach. 

July 14. i am going to the beach 
to stop with Beany in his fathers 
tent, it is called hotel de pig. 

July 15. i gess i will go tomor- 
row. 

July 16. me and Beany went to 
the beach and stopped all day and all 
nite. we had a bully time. 

July 17. another hot day. went 
in swiming 4 times, my back is all 
burned. 

July 18. me and Beany got in the 
newsleter today, the paper said the 
Siamese twins was at the beach stop- 
ing at Watsons tent. Pewt was mad 
becaus we got in the paper and he 
[ 137 ] 


The Real Diary 

dident and told all round that it did- 
ent mean me and Beany but Rashe 
Belnap and Horris Cobbs. 

July 19. Hot as time, nothing 
particular today. 

July 20. Hot as time, nothing 
particular today. 

July 21. Auful hot! big thunder 
shower and litening struck a tree in 
front of Perry Moltons house. 

July 22. Went to church. Beany 
let the wind out of the organ and it 
squeaked and made everybody latF. 
Keene and Cele sing in the quire, 
father feels pretty big about it. 

July 23. i got stung by hornets 
today, i went in swiming at the ed- 
dy and when i was drying my close 
i set rite down on a stump where 
[ 188 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

there was a nest of yellow bellied 
hornets, they all lit on me and i 
thought i was afire for a minit. i 
ran and div rite off the bank and 
swam way out under water, when i 
came up they were buzing round jest 
where i went down, when i came 
out the fellers put mud on my bites 
and after a while they stoped hurt- 
ing. i tell you the fellers jest died 
laffing to see me run and holler. 

July 24. Brite and fair, i was all 
sweled up with hornet bites but 
they dident hurt enny, i looked jest 
like Beany when he had the mumps, 
everyone lafFed at me. 

July 25. i got a fishhook in my 
leg today, me and Fatty Melcher 
was a fishing when we got our lines 

[ 139 ] 


The Real Diary 

tangled, i hollered first cut, but i 
dident have enny nife and Fatty 
woodent let me have his nife. So we 
got jerking our lines kinder mad like 
and all of a suddin the hook got into 
my leg. gosh you bet it hurt, me 
and Fatty got the hook out but it 
bled some, the worst of it was there 
was a wirm on the hook and when 
we got the hook out they wasent 
enny wirm there. Fatty says people 
sometimes dies from having wirms 
in them, i bet this one has crawled 
way in. it may grow inside of me. 
something is always hapening to 
me. when i got home i went down 
to docter Derborns store and bought 
some wirm medicine and swalowed 
[ 140 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

sum. it was auful bitter, it cost 20 
cents out of my cornet money. 

July 26. brite and fair, i was all 
rite today except my leg was stiff! 
mother asked what made me lame 
and she put on a peace of pork, i 
told her about the wirm and she said 
the pork wood draw him out if he 
was there but she gessed he dident 
go in. when i told her about the 
wirm medecine she jest set down and 
lafFed. so i gess i needent wory 
about having wirms. i went down 
to doctor Derborns and tride to get 
him to take the medicine back but 
he said he woodent. i think he is 
pretty mean not to. 

July 27. i coodent go in swiming 
[ 141 ] 


The Real Diary 

today on account of my leg. all the 
fellers went in and i had to set on 
the bank and see them. 

July 28. Coodent go in swiming 
today either, my leg is nearly well, 
mother took off the pork today, it 
was all white where the pork was. 
i ean go in swiming Monday, i went 
down to the library tonite. if is the 
first time i have been down sinee Joe 
Parsons chased me out. i gess he has 
forgotten it. i got out Bush Boys to 
read, it is a splendid book about 
shooting lions and zebras and gerafs 
and everything. 

July 29. i tried to have father let 
me stay away from church today be- 
cause my leg was sore but he said all 
rite you can stay, but i gess that leg 
[ 142 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

will be too sore to let you go in 
swiming this week, so i went to 
church and dident limp enny. this 
afternoon i set under the apple tree 
and read Bush Boys, father and mo- 
ther went to ride with Nellie, it is 
the first time mother has been out. 
Aunt Sarah took care of the baby, 
they gess they will name it Edward 
Ashman Shute. i gess it is named 
Ashman after the leader of the band, 
i am going to tell him tomorrow and 
see if he wont sell me a cornet on 
trust, brite and fair. 

July 30. Brite and fair, i told fa- 
ther i was going down to see Mr. 
Ashman, and he said if you ever do 
i will lick you. the babys name is 
Edward Ashton Shute and not Ash- 

[ 143 ] 


The Real Diary 

man. i woodent name him for enny 
cornet player, it is pretty tuff luck, 
if i cood have got that cornet i wood- 
ent have minded a licking, went in 
swiming today. 

July 31. Franky had the croop 
last nite. i waked up and heard him 
cough auful funny and kinder as if 
his throte was tite. i called mother 
and she came in and hollered for 
Aunt Sarah and father and they 
rushed round lively and gave him egg 
and sugar and put hot cloths on his 
throte til he howled and after he cood 
howl he was all well. Aunt Sarah 
took him in with her the rest of the 
nite. father said i was a brick to 
wake up and call them, i dont know 
[ 144 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

when he has called me a brick before, 
went in swiming 3 times to-day. 

Aug. 1. brite and fair. Annie 
tumbled down the front steps from 
the top to the bottom, she howled 
and mother thought she was about 
killed but she was so fat that she did- 
ent hurt her. 

Aug. 2. father came home early 
to-day and took mother and Aunt 
Sarah and Keene & Georgie to ride. 
Me and Cele staid to look after the 
house. Cele went up stairs to look 
after the baby and when she was 
gone i got Annie and Franky fiting. 
it was the funniest fite i ever saw. 
they jest pushed each other round 
and tried to claw each other, while 
[ 145 ] 


The Real Diary 

they was filing Cele came down stairs 
and pulled them apart and boxed 
their ears and made them go in 
different rooms. She jawed me and 
said she wood tell father, when fa- 
ther came home she told on me and 
father sent me to bed at six o’clock. 
You jest wait Cele and you will find 
out. 

Aug. 3, 186- brite and fair, the 
fellers played a pretty mean trick on 
me tonite. they played it on Nibby 
Hartwel last nite. Nibby is visiting 
his aunt and comes from the city and 
is pretty green like most folks from 
the city, you see if i hadent got sent 
to bed becaus Cele told on me i wood 
have been there and seen them play 
it on Nibby. well last nite all the 
[ 146 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

fellers was out. Whack and Boog 
and Pozzy and Pewt and Beany and 
Nipper and Cawcaw and Pile and 
Chick and Micky and Pricilla and 
Fatty. Nibby he was there too. 
they wanted to play lead the old 
blind horse to water and i was to be 
the blind horse, they said they had 
some fun playing it the nite before, 
that was when they played it on 
Nibby but i dident know that. Well 
you blindfole a feller and give him a 
rope and a swich and the other fellers 
get on the other end of the rope and 
the feller nearest you has a bell and 
rings it and you pull and if you can 
pull him up to you, you can paist 
time out of him with your swich, 
only if you pull olF your blindfole 
[ 147 ] 


The Real Diary 

all the fellers can paist time out of 
you. Well they blindfoled me and 
hollered ready and i began to yank 
and pull and the feller rung his bell 
and he came pretty hard at first but 
i kept yanking and bimeby he come 
so quick that i nearly fell over back 
wards and i felt him and grabed him 
and began to paist time out of him 
when he grabed away my swich and 
began to paist me, and that wasent 
fair and i pulled off my blindfole and 
who do you suppose it was, well it 
was Wiliam Perry Molton and he 
was mad. they had tied me to his 
door bell and i had yanked out almost 
ten feet of wire, when i saw who it 
was gosh i began to holler and he 
stoped licking me. i gess he never 

[ 148 ] 



Aj)proac]i to Squamscott River 
Through the woods 


. Tl 


Of a Real Boy 

licked anyone before because he did- 
ent know jest how to lay it on. well 
when he found out how it was he let 
me go but he said he shood have to 
do something about the boys distirb- 
ing him so. it was a pretty mean 
trick to play on a feller, we are go- 
ing to try and play it on Pop Clark 
tomorrow nite. 

Aug. 4. brite and fair, me and 
Hiram Mingo had a race today to 
see whitch cood swim the furtherest 
under water, i beat him easy, he 
can lick me but i can beat him swim- 
ing. 

Aug. 5. Nothing particular today, 
only church. 

Aug. 6. the baby was sick today, 
had the doctor. 


[ 149 ] 


The Real Diary 

Aug. 7. the baby was sicker, i 
dident go in swiming. 

Aug. 8. the baby is better today, 
i went in swiming 5 times. 

Aug. 9. Raned all day. The baby 
is all rite, i went bullfroging with 
Chick Chickering. 

Aug. 10. Nellie is sick. Joe Hanes 
cut a hole in her and put in a onion 
and some braded hair and then father 
took her out to pastur. i cant ride 
her for a month. 

Aug. 11. brite and fair, mister 
Watson, Beany s father got thro wed 
off of his horse today and renched 
his rist. the horse coodent have 
throwed him but the gert broke. 
Mister Watson can ride splendid. 

[ 150 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

Aug. 12. brite and fair. No more 
church this month, bully. 

Aug. 13. brite and fair, i went 
down to Ed Toles and me and Ed 
rode on the hack with Joe Parmer. 

Aug. 14. Ed Tole and Frank 
Hanes are mad. Frank hollered over 
to Ed, Ed Tole fell in a hole and 
coodent get out to save his sole, and 
Ed hollered back Frank Hanes aint 
got no branes. and then they was 
mad. 

Aug. 15. Wiliam Perry Molton 
has got some ripe apples in his back 
yard, me and Pewt helped him ketch 
some hens today and he said we cood 
have some apples if they was any on 
the ground, they was only 2 wirmy 
[ 151 ] 


The Real Diary 

ones but before we left 5 or 6 fell off 
i gess it was becaus Pewt pushed me 
agenst the tree, they was pretty 
good apples too. 

Aug. 16. Rany. i went fishing 
with Potter Gorham, caught 3 roach 
and 5 hornpowt. we et them for sup- 
per. father said i can clean fish most 
as well as he can. he says he will 
come home some day erly and go a 
fishing. 

Aug. 17. John Gardner has hung 
up a Grant and Colfax flag, they 
will be some fun this fall. 

Aug. 18. brite and fair. Today i 
went fishing with Fatty Melcher. 
we caught some ells and some horn- 
powt. ells and hornpowt can live a 
[ 152 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

long time out of water and so when 
i got home i piit 5 that were alive in 
the rane water barril. 

Aug. 19 . brite and fair, it is fun 
to sit round all day Sunday and not 
have to go to church. 

Aug. 20. brite and fair, i had to 
spend the whole morning in going to 
the river for water for washing, it 
was wash day and when mother 
went to the rane water barril there 
was 5 dead hornpowt floting on the 
top. she made me tip the barrel over 
and get water from the river, they 
was some fun for Beany helped me 
and he stood in the hand cart and 
filled the tubs and all of a sudden i 
let go and the old cart flew up and 
[ 153 ] 


The Real Diary 

Beany and the tub and the pail and 
everything went rite in. Beany isent 
going to speak to me ever again. 

Aug. 21, 186- Gosh, we are hav- 
ing fun now. what do you think, 
they is going to be a big mass meet- 
ing this fall. Ben Butler and Jake 
Ely and lots of old pelters are going 
to be here, and they is going to be 4 
or 5 bands and lots of fun well be- 
fore that comes they is going to be 
lots of political meetings and the first 
one is to be next week, and father is 
going to make a speach. Gim Luv- 
erin and Bil Morrill and General 
Marsten and Tom Levitt, and he is 
a ripper to holler, and they want fa- 
ther to make a speach. father says 
he must work for the party and per- 
[ 154 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

haps he can get his salery rased, so 
he has been a riting every nite and 
mumbling it over to hisself and last 
nite he said he had got it. tonite he 
is a going to speak it to us. 

Aug. 22. last nite father studed 
his speach over and let us stay up to 
hear it. he stood up and looked auful 
stirn and put one hand in the buzum 
of his shert. i coodent help laflfin, 
but he told me to shet up or i cood 
go to bed and so i shet up. i tell you 
it was fine. It begun Mister Moddi- 
rator had i suposed, or for 1 moment 
dremp that i a humble offis holder 
under this glorious government, 
wood have been called upon to speak, 
i shood have remained at home with 
my wife and my children. 

[ 155 ] 


The Real Diary 

i said, if you dont want to make a 
speach why dont you stay at home 
that nite, and he said 1 more word 
from you sir and you go to bed. so i 
dident yip again. 

then he went on like this, were it 
not that a crool axident in my erly 
youth, in my far away boyhood days 
prevented me from voluntearing and 
desecrating my life to my countrys 
welfare, in the strugle jest ended i 
wood have poared out evry drop of 
my blud to have maintaned her 
owner and the owner of her flag, 
mother began to lafF and said George 
how can you tell such feerful stories, 
you know you were scart most to 
deth becaus you was afraid you wood 
be drafted. 


[ 156 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

father said they was a lot of old 
fellows traveling round the country 
and talking that way who coodent 
have been drug into the war with a 
ox chane. then he stood on the oth- 
er leg a while and said, it is peculi- 
arly aproprate that Exeter, the berth 
place of Lewis Cas, the educater of 
Webster, the home of Amos Tuck, 
of General Marston shood be four- 
most in the party strife, and as for 
me i wirk only for my partys good, 
my countrys good, without feer or 
hope of reward, they was a lot more 
to it, and some of it you cood hear 
about a mile he hollered so. 

Aug. 23 . We are all going the nite 
of the rally, mother says she wont 
go for she wood be ashamed to hear 
[ 157 ] 


The Real Diary 

father tell such dredful stories. 
Aunt Sarah dont want to go because 
she is afraid father will brake down, 
but she has got to go with me and 
Keene and Cele and Georgie. 

Aug. 24. father practised his 
speach tonite and we all hollered and 
claped at the fine parts, he has got 
a new pair of boots, they hurt like 
time and he only wears them nites 
when he is practising his speach. 

Aug. 25. father licked me tonite 
becaus i spoke some of his speach to 
Beany, he was auful mad and said i 
was the bigest fool he ever see. the 
fellers have got up a Grant Club. 
Pricilla cant belong becaus he is a 
demicrat. 

Aug. 26. father called me and Be- 
[ 158 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

any out behind the barn tonite and 
gave us 10 cents apeace if we wood- 
ent say enything about his speach. 
after supper father practised again 
but he dident holler so loud becaus 
he was afraid some body wood hear 
him and mother dident want him to 
wake up the baby, and it was Sunday 
too. 

Aug. 27. it has been brite and fair 
all the week and hot as time, i have 
to go to the river for soft water be- 
cause it hasent raned eny since i had 
to tip over the rane water barril. i 
have got a little tirtle as big as a 
cent, father went down to General 
Marstons office tonite to arrange 
about the rally, he came home and 
practised about an hour, i gess he 
[ 159 ] 


The Real Diary 

wood have practised all nite if the 
baby hadent waked up an hollered. 

Aug. 28. we are all getting ready 
for the rally. Keene and Cele and 
Georgie have got some new plad 
dresses, father has got a pair of gray 
britches and a black coat, mother 
said the rally was a good thing be- 
caus it was the first time she had 
seen father dressed up since he was 
married. 

Aug. 29. they was a big thunder 
shower last nite. we all got up in 
the nite and went into mothers 
room, mother sat on the fether bed 
and all them that was scart cood set 
there, i wasent scart. father said it 
wood be jest the cussid luck to have 
it rane the nite of the rally. 

[ 160 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

Aug. 30. we had the last practise 
tonite, father put on his best close 
and new boots and the girls had on 
their plad dresses and i had on a new 
paper coller. we all set down and fa- 
ther came in and stood up. i tell you 
he looked fine, well he begun, mis- 
ter modderater had i suposed or for 1 
moment dremp, and then he forgot 
the rest, i tell you he was mad. i 
wanted to lafF but dident dass to. 
well after a while he remembered and 
went through it all rite, and then he 
went over it 2 times more, gosh 
what if he shood forget it tomorrow 
nite. he is going to wright some of 
it on his cufs and he practised tonite 
making jestures so as to bring his 
cufs up so that he cood read it. 

[ 161 ] 


The Real Diary 

Aug. 31. the rally is tonite. father 
woke us all up last nite hollering in 
his sleep, he dremp about the speach. 
this morning he went to Boston 
without eating his brekfast. i gess 
he is begining to be scart. i am a 
going to make his boots shine today, 
gosh what if he shood brake down, i 
gess i am getting a little scart too. 
brite and fair. 

Sept. 1. Last nite father came 
honti^and the first thing he did was 
to sentf^e down to miss Pratts for 
his shert. it was all pollished and 
shone like glass, then he asked if i 
had blacked his boots and then he et 
supper, he dident eat much though, 
he said Mr. Tuck came down from 
Boston with him. Mr. Tuck was a 
[ 162 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

going to make a speach first and 
then he was going to introduce Gim 
Loverin as chairman and then Gim 
Loverin was a going to call on father, 
father said he bet 5 dollars he wood 
call him Gim instead of mister mod- 
derater. father was pretty cross at 
supper, i gess he was getting scart. 
the baby began to cry and father 
asked mother why she dident choak 
the squawling brat and mother sorter 
laffed and put the baby into fathers 
lap and said i gess you had better 
choak him. father laffed and began 
to toss the baby up and down, he 
likes the baby and while he was play- 
ing with it he was all rite, but after 
supper he was cross and said he hed 
a auful headake. then he went prac- 
[ 163 ] 


The Real Diary 

rising his speach again so as not to 
call the modderater Gim. well we 
got ready and went down erly to get 
some good seats so as to hear father 
and see him come in with them that 
was to set on the platform, we 
wanted to go down with father but 
he said he eoodent bother with us. 
but before we went he came down 
stairs with his new close on and he 
looked fine but his face looked auful 
white, he said he had a headake but 
as soon as he got started to speak it 
wood all go off. so we went down. 
Cele had her hair curled and Keene 
had a new red silk ribbon on her hair 
becaus her hair wont curl and Aunt 
Sarah had on a new dolman with 
heeds on it and some long eoral ear- 

[ 164 ] 



Scene on Squamscott River 









Of a Real Boy 

rings and they all looked fine. Aunt 
Sarah took Georgie by the hand be- 
caus she was the littlest and me and 
Keene and Cele followed on. 

When we got there the band was 
playing in front of the town hall and 
aunt Sarah said i cood stay out and 
hear it and then said i cood sit with 
Gim Wingit and Willy Swet if i 
wood behave, i said i wood and we 
lissened and after the band went in 
we went too. most all the seats were 
taken and we got some bully seats 
way up in front, i looked for father 
but coodent see him becaus the 
speakers hadent come in. well jest 
as soon as we got in the policeman 
was up in front and he said they has 
been to much whisling and stamping 
[ 165 ] 


The Real Diary 

and the next one that whisles or 
stamps will get put out. well they 
was old Swane and Brown and Kize 
and Dirgin and every body kept 
quiet, after a few minits the band 
began to play hale to the chief and 
the speakers came marching up the 
middle ile. i looked for father but 
he wasnt there, evrybody began to 
clap and stamp and Gim and Willy 
asked me where my old man was. i 
stood up to see if he was there and 
jest then i saw the policeman a rush- 
ing at me. he grabed me by the col- 
lar and shook me round till i dident 
know which end my head was on 
and he draged me down the ile and 
threw me out. as we were going 
down the ile i saw Aunt Sarah run- 
[ 166 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

ning down the other ile as fast as she 
eood go with her bonnet on the baek 
of her head and Keene and Cele and 
Georgie following along all bawling, 
she got out in the entry jest as he 
was going to put me out of the front 
door and she grabed me away from 
him and said you misable cowardly 
retch to treat a boy that way. he 
said i whisled and she said he dident 
and you knew it only you dident 
dass take ennyone else. 

Then she told us to come home 
and we went home as fast as we eood 
all bawling, when we got home mo- 
ther was sitting up alone and aunt 
Sarah started to tell her and Keene 
and Cele and Georgie all bawled and 
you never heard such a noise, and 
[ 167 ] 


The Real Diary 

father was in bed with a headake 
and hollered out what in time is the 
matter, and she told him and i heard 
him jump out of bed and in a minit 
he came out buttoning up his sus- 
penders. Mother said where in the 
world are you going George, and he 
said things is come to a pretty pass 
if a boy cant go and hear his father 
make a speach without being banged 
round by a policeman, i am going 
down to knock the heads off every 
policeman there, and he reeched for 
his vest, mother said George, dont 
you go near the hall, and father said 
he cood lick anny 2 men on the po- 
lice force easy and he would show 
them how to slam people round and 
[ 168 ] 




Phillips Academy as it was in the ’ 60 ’s 
where the ‘‘^stewdcats ” laid the foundation of 
their future greatness 















Of a Real Boy 

he reeched for his coat, and Keene 
and Cele and Georgie began to bawl 
again to think he wood get hurt and 
aunt Sarah and mother said you had 
better not go George, and father said 
he wood give them more fun in 5 
minits than they had seen in a polit- 
ical rally in 5 years and he reeched 
for his boots and mother said what 
will they think of you after you have 
sent word that you are too sick to 
make a speach, to see you come rush- 
ing into the hall and go punching 
the policemen and father had got on 
1 boot and when she said that he be- 
gan to look kinder sick and said, 
thunder that is so. and then his 
headake got wirse and he gave me a 
[ 169 ] 


The Real Diary 

twenty five cent scrip and Keene and 
Cele and Georgie ten cents each and 
he went to bed and so did we. 

i wonder if his head aked really so 
he coodent make a speach or if he 
was scart. i bet he was scart. 

school commences monday. father 
hasent asked once about my diry, so 
i aint going to wright enny more. 


THIRTY YEARS (OR MORE) AFTER 

On looking back over the pages of 
the “Diary” it appears to me that 
some sort of an amende honorable is 
due to those citizens now living, and 
the relatives and friends of those now 
dead, whose names have appeared in 
[ 170 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

the “Diary” and who have, so to 
speak, been handled without gloves. 

That I have been neither mobbed, 
nor horsewhipped, nor sued, nor 
prosecuted, but that I have enjoyed 
many a good laugh with — and have 
received many pleasant words from 
— the victims, and their friends, is 
good evidence that they, and their 
more fortunate brothers who have 
not been therein mentioned, have 
taken the “Diary ” in the very spirit 
in which it was published, that of 
affectionate and amusing retrospect. 

And it is indeed with affection 
that I recall those men, at that 
time in their prime. That I could 
not then understand the reason why 
they did not fully enter into and ap- 
[ 171 ] 


The Real Diary 

predate the spirit that prompted me 
and my boon companions to trans- 
gress so many rules, laws, and stat- 
utes is not surprising. Boys seldom 
can understand it. But, although I 
now fully appreciate it, I often 
wonder at the spirit that prompted 
so many of those men in after years 
to show me so many kindnesses, so 
much encouragement, and such great 
forbearance. 

So many inquiries have been made 
of me about that cornet, the soul-fill- 
ing ambition of my early years, that 
I feel that the uncertainty in regard 
to that delightful instrument ought 
to be cleared up. I never did save 
up enough money to buy a cornet. 
I haven’t to this day. But many 
[ 172 ] 


Of a Real Boy 

years afterwards, when my ambition 
had been turned into other and 
equally profitless channels, upon the 
death of a dear friend his beautiful 
cornet was sent me. I have it now, 
as the neighbors and the members 
of my family can testify fully and 
with deep feeling, if called upon. 

H. A. S. 


[ 173 ] 




Dramatis Personae 



A GOOD many years ago, dur- 
ing my college days, it was 
my custom and that of my 
room-mate. Brown of Exeter, to 
make our room the gathering-place 
for Exeter boys, both “stewdcats” 
and homesick Exeter youths then 
filling positions in Boston. It hap- 
pened that frequently undergradu- 
ates from other towns and cities came 
in at these Saturday evening gather- 
ings and it was a matter of wonder 
to them that we had so much to talk 
about in relation to our native town ; 
and it was their frequent remark 
that “either Exeter is a remarkable 
[ 177 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

place, or you are a remarkably loyal 
set of fellows.” 

That Exeter is a remarkable place 
is an axiom, and no better evidence 
of the fact can be found (were evi- 
dence necessary to sustain an axiom) 
than in the loyalty that every citizen 
displays, and the sincere love that 
prompts every one who has ever 
come under the spell of our dear old 
town to revisit her at every oppor- 
tunity. 

Where else could a diary of this 
nature, dealing with actual persons 
and actual events, be published and 
be received with such absolute good- 
nature and even enthusiasm by the 
persons now living who are men- 
tioned therein? 


[ 178 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

It is therefore with affection as 
well as amusement that I append 
the following brief biographical 
sketches of persons mentioned in the 
“Diary,” preserving as nearly as 
possible the order of their appearance 
in the book. As many readers of 
the “Diary” have expressed a desire 
to know more of the subsequent his- 
tories and achievements of those 
therein mentioned, it is hoped this 
information will satisfy a curiosity 
and interest which, to a loyal son of 
Exeter, appear quite natural ; — 

1. Father. George S. Shute. 

A native of Exeter. For twenty-six years a clerk 
in the Boston Naval Office. Still living in Ex- 
eter, an old man with a young tongue ; in fact, 
the quickest man at repartee in Exeter. 

[ 179 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

2. Mother. 

My mother died in the winter of 1895. No 
words can do justice to her qualities. 
sweeter woman ne’er drew breath.” 

3. ‘‘Girn' Melcher. 

An old friend of my father’s. Died in Malden 
a few years ago. 

4. Some of the men who were ^‘wrighting 

fast'' in the Custom House were the 
following : — 

George Davis, of Lexington, who a year ago 
celebrated his fiftieth consecutive year of service 
in the Naval Office; Colonel Ivory Pope, of 
Cambridge ; Benjamin A. Sidwell, of East 
Boston; Jacob A. Howe, of Malden; Frank 
Harriman, a brother of the late Governor Harri- 
man of Concord, N. H. ; Hiram Barrus, of 
Reading, Mass., deceased; C. C. Whittemore, 
of Portsmouth, N. H. ; Charles Mudge, of 
Malden; Matthew F. Whittier, of Medford, 
a brother of the poet Whittier, and a newspaper- 
writer of considerable prominence, writing under 

[ 180 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

the pen-name of "Ethan Spike” ; and Tristram 
Talbot, of Newburyport, with others whom the 
writer does not now recall. A few years later 
the writer spent several of his college vacations 
as deputy clerk in the same Naval Office, and 
made pleasant acquaintances with all of the 
above-named men. He found them very com- 
petent clerks, courteous gentlemen, and the best 
story-tellers that he ever knew, and recollects 
those vacations as very pleasant periods in his 
school life. Some of them still hold positions in 
the Custom House. 

5. Charles Talor'" : Charles Taylor. 

A great friend of the family. Died in Exeter 
about ten years ago. 

6. Beany'': E. L. Watson. 

In business at Williamstown, Mass. Attained 
his boyhood ambition and married Lizzie "Tole,” 
Ed’s sister. 

7. ‘"Pewter": C. E. Purington. 

My near neighbor, a decorative painter, who 
early displayed talent in this direction. 

[ 181 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

8. ^‘Skinny Bruce'" : Wm. J. Bruce. 

A tinsmith of Exeter who still thinks he could 
have licked Frank Elliott. 

9 . Frank Elliott 

A successful mechanic in Boston, who is confi- 
dent that he could have licked Skinny” Bruce. 

10. ^"Nipper": John A. Brown. 

Exeter. Chairman of the School Board. Trustee 
of the Seminary. Trustee of the Library. My 
room-mate at Harvard. 

11 . ‘‘Micky" Gould, 

I do not know what became of Micky.” Wher- 
ever he is, there is a good-natured, jolly man. 

12 . Mr. Winsor, 

Address not known. How he could throw a 
snowball * 

13 . “Ed" Towle. 

Exeter, N. H. With a keen memory for old 
days. 

14 . “Dany " Wingate. 

A very prominent man. The father of J. D. P. 

[ 182 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

and C. E. L. Wingate of the Boston Journal. 
Died at Exeter many years ago. 

15. ^‘Whacker'' : Col. A. M. Chadwick. 

Lowell, Mass. 

16. ‘‘Pozzy'' : Austin K. Chadwick. 

Lowell, Mass. 

Two of the best known and most respected citi- 
zens of Lowell. Dignified and sedate, but just 
touch on old Exeter days and watch their eyes 
twinkle and their tongues loosen. 

17. ‘"Pricilla" : Prof. Charles A. Hobbs. 

Boston. Has written some dreadful mathemat- 
ical works, and revisits Exeter often, but not 
often enough. 

18. “Pheby" : Charles A. Taylor. 

Has inherited the very qualities that made his 
father so good a friend. 

19. “Lubbin'' 

Address not known. 

20. “Nigger " Bell, 

So called because his hair was so very white. 

[ 183 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

Professor of Chemistry in a Western University. 
Died recently in Malden. 

21. Tommy T'hompson: R. G. Thompson. 

New London, Conn. 

22. ^^Dutchy'' : Dr. William A. Sea- 

mans. 

New York City. Fullback on the Harvard ’77 
eleven. There are several ex-principals of the 
Exeter High School who will remember Thomp- 
son and Seamans in very clear and vivid colors. 

23. Chickering: Prof. John J. 
Chickering. 

Flushing, L. 1. Commissioner of Public Educa- 
tion of New York State. 

24. ‘‘Tady'' : Timothy Finton. 

Exeter. An expert wood- worker with a leaning 
for politics. 

25. ‘"Gwi'' Wingate: James D. P. Win- 

gate. 

Winchester, Mass. Tlie business manager of the 
Boston JoumaL 


[ 184 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

26. ^^ Skipy '\- H. C. Moses. 

Exeter. For many years in the wholesale wool 
business in Boston. One of the keenest sports- 
men and best wing shots in New Hampshire. 

27. John G. Wood. 

Chicago. Manager of the McKay Cordage Fac- 
tory in Chicago. Promises to return to Exeter 
when he has made his "pile” ($100,000). 
From present indications, the prospect is favor- 
able. 

28. Billy Folsom: Wm. H. Folsom. 

Exeter. Member of the firm of E. Folsom & 
Co. Brass Works. One of Harvard’s greatest 
pitchers. 

29. ^^Hoppy'' Gadd. 

A very eccentric but sterling citizen, who could 
make cowhide boots which, like the panels in 
the "one-horse shay,” "would last like iron for 
things like these.” Died in Exeter a few years 
ago. 

'‘Si" Smith. 

The man with the "funny sine.” Died in 
Exeter nearly thirty years ago. 

[ 185 ] 


30. 


Dramatis Personae . 

31. “ Gran Miller and ‘^Ben ” Rundlet, 

Addresses not known. 

32. Squire Lane, 

Died in Lynn. 

33. Charles Bui'ley, 

Died in Exeter. For many years Treasurer of 
Phillips Exeter Academy, and Superintendent 
of the " Unitarial ” Sunday School. 

34. Keene'' : My Sister, Mrs. C. E. By- 

INGTON. 

Exeter. A very able and accomplished woman. 
The one to whom all members of the family go 
when in trouble, 

35. Lucy Watson, 

Mrs. Frank Conner of Lynn. 

36. “ Curley" Conner: Mr. Frank Conner. 

Lynn. Husband of the aforesaid. 

37. “Jo” Parsons: Mr. Joseph S. Par- 

sons. 

Boston. An expert bookkeeper. 

[ 186 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

38. Swett: Mr. Wm. Swett. 

Jamaica Plain. I remember him as one of the 
most polite and affable boys I ever met. 

39. Mr, ^'‘Ltoveir who said, “o helV : C. 

Lovell, 2d. 

One of the best amateur actors and j oiliest men 
I ever knew. Died recently. 

40. John Flanagan, 

Exeter. A tinsmith and co-laborer with "Skin- 
ny” Bruce. 

41. ^^Gimmy'" Fitzgerald, 

Died at Exeter thirty years ago. 

42. ‘^Old*^ Head: Oren Head. 

Many students will affectionately remember him. 
Deceased. 

43. ‘‘BoV Carter, 

The old janitor of the Town Hall. Gruff, but 
very kind-hearted. Deceased. 

44. Wats '': Irving M. Watson. 

Father of Beany,” and pleasantly like him. 

[ 187 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

45. John GetchelL 

A liberal, free, and kind-hearted Exeter mer- 
chant. Deceased. 

46. Eben Folsom, 

Uncle of "Billy,” and head of the firm of which 
Billy is a member. 

47. ‘ Eharlie '': Dit. C. H. Gerrish. 

48. ^^Eoc' Prey: Dr. J. E. S. Pray. 

Gentlemen both, of whom the writer can say 
everything good. 

49. Alice “ Gewell^' who was “a dary maid'': 

Miss Alice Jewell. 

Instructor of singing in the schools of Exeter. 

50. "^OldKize": Philander Keyes. 

A policeman of thirty years ago. Deceased. 

51. “Bill" Hartnett, 

Who used to make it lively for the last men- 
tioned. A man of many good qualities notwith- 
standing. Deceased. 

[ 188 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

52. “OW” Swain, 

A contemporary of "Old Kize/’ and a co-laborer 
in the same vineyard. 

53. ""Mister'' Gordon: Hon. Nathaniel 

Gordon. 

A retired lawyer of Exeter. 

54. Dora Moses, 

55. Mary ""Loverin" : Mrs. Mary Leth- 

bridge. 

Two beautiful girls and inseparable companions, 
whose deaths were untimely and irreparable. 

56. ""Cele''" : My sister, Celia E. Shute. 

Exeter. A stenographer, and a writer of short 
stories for magazines. 

57. ""Cawcaw" Harding: Prof. B. F. Hard- 

ing. 

Boston. An early advocate of those methods of 
instruction that result in ^‘mens sana in corpore 
sano.*' 


[ 189 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

58. Doctor"' Dearborn, 

A most eccentric old apothecary. Died in Exeter 
a few years ago. 

59. Aunt Sarah" : F. Shute. 

Exeter. The favorite aunt of a large family, all 
of whose geese are swans. 

60. Fatty" M etcher : F. A. Melcher. 

Boston. So named because he was not fat. 

61. "^Genny" Morrison: Mrs. John J. 

Joyce. 

Andover, Mass. By not appearing at our Gram- 
mar School Reunion " Genny ” disappointed five 
hundred people. 

62. J. Albert Clark, 

Exeter. One of the proprietors of the Exeter 
Machine Works. He has always had a very 
kindly interest in "Beany” and "Plupy,” in 
spite of the many annoyances he suffered at 
their boyish hands. 

63. ‘"‘Bill" Morrill: Mr. Wm. B. Morrill. 

For many years selectman of Exeter. Died in 

1878 . 


[ 190 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

64 . ^'‘Dave^' Quimby, 

Every student will recollect him. Died at Exeter 
recently. 

65 . ^^Chitter'': James Robinson. 

A truckman in Boston. 

66 . Chadwick, 

A New York broker, whose ^^heart ’s in the high- 
lands;” to wit, Exeter. 

67 . Clark: Will Clark. 

Roxbury, Mass. A born comedian and a delight- 
fully entertaining man. 

68 . Shinny'' Thyng, 

One of the few Exeter boys who continues his 
father’s business at the old stand. If more did 
the same, the prosperity of country towns would 
be assured. 

69 . ‘^Gim" Erly, 

Lives somewhere in the West. 

70 . ""Honey" Donovan: William Dono- 

van. 

Providence. 


[ 191 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

71. ‘^Mose'' Gordon. 

A Texas cattle-man. 

72. Mr. Lamed. 

Unitarian clergyman. Deceased. 

73. Steele. 

A merchant in Denver. 

74. ^‘Mis Packer d'' : Mrs. Mary Packard. 

A famous local singer, now living in California. 

75. “Gm Loverin'': James M. Lovering. 

A very shrewd politician. Deceased. 

76. ‘‘Old Mister Stickney'" : Judge W. W. 

Stickney. 

With whom I studied law. Deceased ; not, how- 
ever, because of that fact. Judge Stickney was 
a sound lawyer and an upright, kind-hearted 
man. 

77. “Ed ” Dearborn. 

The old bell-ringer. Deceased. 

78. John Quincy “Ann” Pollard: J. Q. A. 

Pollard. 

A very old man, upon whom the boys were wont 

[ 192 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

to play tricks, but who had developed wonder- 
ful precision of aim with a knotted cane. De- 
ceased. 

79. Dan Ranlet : D. W. Ranlet. 

Boston Produce Exchange. 

80. George M, Perkins, 

For many years an expressman between Boston 
and Exeter. 

81. John E. Gibson, 

Master of the Agassiz School, Boston. Residence, 
Jamaica Plain. I take the opportunity to notify 
him that the Exeter High School holds its quin- 
quennial reunion June, 1903. 

82. Isaac Shute, 

A retired merchant of Exeter. Deceased. 

83. Major Blake, 

A famous Boniface, and for many years proprie- 
tor of the Squamscott. Deceased. 

84. Charles D, Towle, 

An equally famous livery-stable keeper, who 

[ 193 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

periodically fought to a finish with Major Blake 
for passengers to Hampton Beach. Deceased. 

85. Frank Haines. 

A farmer. Residence, Exeter. 

86. The Baby'' : Edward A. Shute. 

Exeter. Who can now handle his elder brother 
with ease. 

87. ^Hrankie" : Frank F. Shute. 

Who thinks he can do likewise, but cannot. A 
hotel-keeper at Lakewood, New Jersey. 

88. ‘‘Annie" : Miss Annie P. Shute. 

Who, by virtue of a clerkship in my office, owns 
the entire establishment. 

89. “Georgie." 

Instructor in Latin and French in the Albany 
Academy, Albany, N. Y. 

90. “Nibby." 

A summer visitor named Hartwell. Deceased. 

91. Hiram Mingo. 

A colored boy. Address not known. 

[ 194 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

92 . Joe Palmer. 

A hackman with whom the boys used to ride. 
Address not known. 

93 . John E. Gardner. 

A member of an old family of merchants in Ex- 
eter. Deceased. Brother of Elizabeth Gardner 
Bouguereau, the artist. 

94 . General Marston. 

A famous New Hampshire lawyer and veteran 
of the Civil War. Deceased. 

95 . Amos Tuck. 

A famous lawyer, politician, financier, and 
Member of Congress. Deceased. 

96 . Mr. Gravel. 

Address not known. 

97 . Elkins and Graves. 

Famous auctioneers at that period. Deceased. 

98 . Scott “Briggam.'" 

One of the boys then, one of the boys now. Ex- 
eter. 


[ 195 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

99. Charlie Woodbury, 

Deceased. 

100. ‘^Potter'' Gorham: Arthur Gorham. 

Killed by an accidental discharge of his gun 
nearly thirty years ago. A born naturalist. 

101. “OW Francis^ 

For thirty-three years principal at the Grammar 
School at Exeter. On his resignation, a few 
years ago, a reunion was held which was at- 
tended by old pupils from every State in the 
Union, to do him honor. Still hale and hearty, 
and living in Exeter. 

102. Doctor Perry, 

An old family physician, who has ushered more 
children and children’s children into the world 
than any man in the county, and who is beloved 
and revered by every one of them. Miss Jewett, 
in her " Country Doctor,” based her delightful 
description upon Dr. William G. Perry, her 
uncle. Living in Exeter. 

103. John Adams, 

Who has trimmed enough carriages to set all 

[ 196 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

New Hampshire awheel, and who still practises 
his trade in Exeter. 

104. Nell Towle: Mrs. George W. 
Hooper. 

Exeter. As rosy, good-natured, and musically 
inclined as she was in the good old days. 

105. William Perry Moulton. 

A prosperous real-estate and insurance man, 
who unfortunately for his peace of mind tried 
to raise Bartlett pears. Concord grapes, and As- 
trachan apples in the neighborhood that was in- 
fested by Plupy ” and his associates ; who fre- 
quently tracked, chased, and caught them red- 
handed, but who was too kind-hearted even 
then to deprive them of their ill-gotten gains. 

106. Chris” Staples. 

Who remembers the fight with Charlie Clark. 

107. Charlie Clark. 

Deceased. Just before he died he read the 
Diary ” and sent word to the author that he 
remembered the scene in which he figured and 
much enjoyed the book. 

[ 197 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

108. Mr. Ashman. 

A veteran band-leader of Boston. 

109. Frank Hervey. 

A veteran restaurant-keeper in Exeter. Now 
living in Concord, N. H. 

110. ^^Rashe Belnap'' : William H. Bel- 
knap. 

A retired banker and real-estate man of Exeter. 
Town clerk of Exeter for twenty-five years. 

111 . Henry Simpson. 

Periodical dealer in the late sixties. Living in 
Maine. 

112 . Luke Manix. 

Now living in Texas. As a boy he could curve 
a snowball round the corner, like T. B. Aldrich’s 
"Binny Wallace.” 

113. ^^Bob Ridley'" : George Elliott. 

Exeter. A right good fellow. 

114. Sam Dyer. 

A rather eccentric blacksmith. Died in the 
West. 


[ 198 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

115. Horace Cobb, 

A good-natured, short, and extremely fat man. 
A native of Exeter, and last of a very prominent 
family. Died several years ago. 

116. Dennis Cokely, 

Address not known. I have always felt badly 
^^to think the fight was thro wed away, and 
neither of them licked.” 

117. Johnnie Rogers, 

A cousin of the Chadwicks. Deceased. 

118. Cap, John W, Chadwick, 

A retired sea-captain. Father of "Poz,” 
"Boog,” "Whack,” and "Willie,” "Whack’s 
little brother.” A most cultivated gentleman, 
whose heart was kind, but whose word was law. 
Deceased. 

119. ‘‘Zee'' Smith: Frank Smith. 

Deceased in Lowell. 

120. Miss Pratt, 

A laundress much patronized by students. She 
accumulated much property by practising the 
gentle art of polishing shirts. 

[ 199 ] 


Dramatis Personae 

121. ^^Old Durgin'' : Mr. Ezra Durgin. 

A rather quick-tempered but worthy policeman, 
contemporary with "Old Swain” and "Old 
Kize.” 

122. Various ^^stewdcats.'' 

Who have played their parts and gone. 

123. ^^Plupy” ^^SMnnyJ' “Polelegs'' : The 
Author. 

He minimis non curat lex. 


[ 200 ] 

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